Eastern Beach Anzac service to return this year

ORGANISERS of last year’s inaugural Anzac Day dawn service at Eastern Beach have said the event was a success and that the service will return in 2018.

Between 3,000 and 4,000 people attended the 2017 service, which was designed to complement the Geelong RSL pre-dawn service at the Peace Memorial in Johnstone Park that can only accommodate a small group of people.

The new event – which will be held at 6am on April 25 – is also intended to take pressure off the Torquay dawn service, which has burgeoned in size in recent years.

The Eastern Beach service is organised by a group of individuals (mostly Vietnam veterans) chaired by Rieny Nieuwenhof, who is also president of the Geelong branch of the Vietnam Veterans’ Association of Australia.

The concept was conceived some years ago by Bob Thompson, part of the event’s committee and also a Vietnam veteran.

Mr Nieuwenhof said attendance at the first event exceeded committee expectations and showed that Geelong people wanted their own dawn service.

“Last year was a learning experience and there will certainly be improvements in 2018, but the basic simplicity of the service, with only one wreath being laid and one speaker, will remain the same.”

A number of suggestion made by people who attended the 2017 service have been and are being examined as part of the planned improvements.