ANZAC DAY
A century of
ANZAC rememberance
It is 2.00am on the morning of our
ANZAC Service. There is a real sense of
anticipation in the air. There hasn’t been
much sleep, as the sounds of Brothers
In Arms breaks the silence and adds to
the excitement of what lays ahead. The
Production Manager has not yet been to
sleep and is going through a final light and
sound check. A gentle mist has formed over
the water and the puff of the fog machine
creates an amazing picture as the lighting
changes from the blue to yellow to red. I
know this is going to be a very special day.
It has been my five year dream to
commemorate and remember those 128
Old Guildfordians who lost their lives in the
different theatres of war. In just two hours
the darkness will be broken with the buzz
and excitement of those volunteers who have
given up their time to help with the service.
Some of the first to arrive are the young
students who will brave the cold water and
accompany the rowers to wait quietly for
their prompt to dramatically recreate the
landing on the Gallipoli shores in a very
contemporary, physical performance.
Very soon the Prefects are welcoming the
guests, many of them relatives of the fallen
soldiers, some of them wearing their family’s
medals; some of them coming with their
children still wiping the sleep out of their
4
eyes. All there with the same reflective
thoughts; to remember those Guildford
Grammar School boys, some very young,
who lost their lives.
Talking to the boys in the darkness, I felt
such an overwhelming sense of satisfaction