Together They Served book launch draws a crowd

ABOUT 40 people attended the book launch of Together They Served at the Torquay RSL on Monday, with people from all walks of life escaping the rain to learn about the area’s war history.

Torquay RSL president Bob Tyler started the proceedings before local photographer, author and Iraq war veteran Gordon Traill spoke of when he was medically discharged from the army in 2006.

He said he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a condition he confessed still affected him in his day-to-day life. He also commended Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex for his efforts in lifting “the profile of healing through sport”.

With his photographs featured in two books The Victoria Cross – Australia Remembers (2018) and Unconquered – Our Wounded Warriors (2019) – which he co-authored – Mr Traill’s presence at the launch was both fitting and welcomed.

Mr Tyler then announced Together They Served author Cheryl Baulch to the podium, praising her and the book as “exceptional”.

Ms Baulch said the book – which took five years of research to piece together – was not easily achieved. She said her main course of action was to find honour boards in the shire, but she discovered many had disappeared.

The 460-page book features stories about the 700 shire residents who enlisted in World War I. She said of those 700, 691 were men and only nine were women.

The youngest person to serve was a 16-year-old male from Connewarre, while the eldest was a 65-year-old male from Anglesea. During her research, Ms Baulch visited cemeteries in an attempt to “put faces to the honour boards”.

She said many people whose names feature on honour boards died at battle, while those who served and survived were not mentioned due to a “variety of conditions and criteria”.

Ms Baulch said the book is as accurate as possible thanks to contributions from people on the Together They Served website.

While the book isn’t for sale, people are welcome to donate $50 to the Torquay RSL in exchange for a signed copy.

Complimentary copies will be distributed to local schools, public libraries, history groups, RSLs and families who assisted in providing key details of family members who fought in World War I or helped acquire relevant photographs and artefacts.

For more information, head to togethertheyserved.com.