Portarlington to lead Anzac Day commemorations across the Bellarine

PORTARLINGTON & St Leonards RSL president Darren McDonald says his sub-branch is looking forward to running its first unrestricted Anzac Day proceedings since before the pandemic began.

RSLs and residents on the Bellarine will pay respects to those that gave the ultimate sacrifice in times of war this coming Tuesday on April 25.

“It’s an extremely special day, Anzac Day, for people to commemorate, and for people to learn, a lot of people still have an ancestral connection to the landing on Gallipoli,” Mr McDonald said.

“I think we’ve also got to remember that we’ve only just come out of Afghanistan as well, and we were there longer than we were in Vietnam, so it’s a chance to honour personnel who were involved there as well.”

Portarlington RSL will host its dawn service at the town’s cenotaph opposite the Portarlington Grand Hotel at 6.30am.

From there, attendees will then congregate on the RSL at the corner of Fenwick Street and Harding Street, before the Portarlington March commences between 10.30am and 11am up Newcombe Street to the cenotaph for the wreath-laying ceremony.

“Anzac Day continues to be a day about education, we need to educate people, especially given the diversity of cultures we have in Australia now, we need to educate younger generations about what the day actually means,” Mr McDonald said.

“Quite simply, without the Anzacs, we wouldn’t be here. If they didn’t make the sacrifices they did, we wouldn’t have the freedoms we have today.

“Portarlington as a town has always come together as one for Anzac Day and will continue to do so into the future.”

Across the Bellarine, Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads will host multiple commemorative events.

Both sub-branches will hold two services on the morning of ANZAC Day.

A 6am dawn service around the Ocean Grove Cenotaph in Ocean Grove Park, followed by a march at 9.45am.

The Ocean Grove march commences in The Terrace and proceeds along Presidents Avenue to Ocean Grove Park. Following the march will be a commemorative and wreath laying service.

Barwon Heads’ March and Service commences at 8.45am from the corner of Hitchcock Avenue and Bridge Road the march, then proceeds along Hitchcock Avenue.

A commemorative and wreath laying service will follow the march at the Cenotaph located outside the Barwon Heads Community Hall.

In Leopold, the Leopold War Memorial Committee and Leopold Lions Club will host a service at 8am at the Leopold War Memorial, which is located on the corner of Stringer Lane and Melaluka Road.

A service will also be held in St Leonards at 9.00am which will take place inside the St Leonards Memorial Hall at 1342 Murradoc Road.

The Drysdale RSL sub-branch will host a service and march.

At approximately 10.15am, participants will assemble in Princess Street near Eversley Street, for the march to commence at 10.30am. The march will run along Princess Street to conclude at the Drysdale Cenotaph.

In the Borough of Queenscliffe, a Dawn Service will be held at 5.45am at the Ocean View Car Park, preceding memorial services in Point Lonsdale at 9am at the Cenotaph on Kirk Road, and at Fort Queenscliff Service at 11am.