Greg Cole
On behalf of Muswellrook RSL Sub Branch, welcome to Muswellbrook and our exciting Carnivale…
My name is Greg Cole; I am President of the Muswellrook RSL Sub Branch and I would like to share a little of my story.
I was born in 1946 at Macksville on the mid-noth coast of NSW. With my Mum and Dad, four brothers and one sister, together we operated a banana plantation at Taylors Arms. My mother came from the area but dad "migrated" from Warnambool in Victoria.
One of my grandfathers came from Norfolk, England and one grandmother came from Tipperary in Ireland. I worked on banana plantations for some years and then in a local bakery until 1967 when I was called up for Nationa Service with the Australian Army. In 1968 I went to Vietnam as a machine gunner with 1st Battalion 1RAR and was involved in several actions including the "Coral" and numerous patrols against the Viet Cong.
In 1969 I left the Army and returnded to Macksville where I worked in the bakery for a further eight and a half years when I then moved to Muswellbrook with my family. I have been activley involved wit the RSL since 1969 and transferred to the Muswellbrook sub branch in 1984. In 2003, I was elected
President of the sub branch. My roles with the sub branch have inlcuded Welfare Officer and Funeral Officer as well as working with my fellow members in supporting Veterans and their familes and the maintenance of he Muswellbrook Memorial Grove and the Muswelbrook War Graves.
In December 2008 the wonderful Muswellbrook Vietnam Memorial was completed and officially dedicated by the Governor of NSW, Professor Marie Bashir.
On 18th August each year, a very speicial ceremony is held at the Memorial on the New England Highway on the northern side of Muswellbrook. Veterans from both New Zealand and South Vietnam join with Australian Vietnam service men and women.
On behalf of the Muswelbrook RSL sub branch and my fellow Vietnam veterans, please accept our invitation to join us at 3.30pm at the Vietnam Memorial on 18th August 2011, the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan. If you can't make the ceremony, when you are visiting Muswellbrook or travelling through, please take a break at the Rest Area and Reflect on the gallant efforts of our armed forces during the Vietnam Conflict and the involvement of our forces throughout the ages in so many theatres of war and armed conflict.
Once again, on behalf of the Cole family, we extend a special welcome to Muswellbrook an invite you to join in the host of events throughout Muswellbrook Carnivale in Spring from August through till December.
