Sale RSL and Community Club is among the groups from across Australia to share more than $2.2 million through the Saluting Their Service commemorative grants program.
Federal Member for Gippsland and Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Darren Chester has announced the Sale RSL would receive $9,550 to create a digital honour roll.
“The digital honour roll will commemorate Australian service personnel who lost their lives during active service,” Mr Chester said.
“Australian service men and women in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations for more than a century have played a role in shaping our nation.
“This honour roll will give the community a new way to remember and honour their sacrifice.”
Sale RSL and Community Club President Marty Tanzer said the digital honour roll would include tributes to 162 men and women who came from Sale and the surrounding areas.
“With the agreement of families, a photo and service information about each of our lost local servicemen and servicewomen who served in the Boer War, World War One, World War Two, Korea, Vietnam and the Middle East will be displayed in the Sub-Branch clubrooms,” Mr Tanzer said.
“Their names and faces will be seen on a big screen in the club and help bring to life the stories of their service and sacrifice.”
Two other groups from Gippsland successfully applied to the grant program: Nowa Nowa Community Development Group will receive $4335 to re-landscape the area around the town’s Anzac memorial sculptures; and Yinnar South Primary School has been allocated $2000 to install two flagpoles in the school yard.
Mr Chester said projects like these helped to preserve Australia’s wartime heritage story for generations to come and support commemorations of our military history.
“This funding will help community groups and local organisations remember the service and sacrifice of our service men and women and support the community to participate in these commemorations,” Mr Chester said.
“The successful community groups and organisations in this round will also be the first to benefit from the Federal Government’s election commitment which saw the Community Grants cap lifted from $4,000 to $10,000.”
Mr Chester said the Australian Government had provided this additional funding to the Saluting Their Service commemorative grants program as part of its continued commitment to commemorating the moments that shaped Australia’s military history.
“This year we have the unique opportunity to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War and the around one million Australians who served and some 39,000 who died,” Mr Chester said. “Remarkably around 12,000 of those veterans are still alive today.
“It has been fantastic to see the creative ways that community groups are commemorating Second World War veterans in their home towns to ensure the memory of our service men and women lives on.”
For more information on the Saluting Their Service grants program, visit the Community Grants Hub (www.communitygrants.gov.au)
