MORE than 3300 Snowy Valleys men and women who bravely put their hand up to serve their country between 1854 and 1920 have been honoured and their names etched in local history with the release of the book, Snowy Valleys Heroes.
The book was officially launched in front of the Jack Ryan VC Memorial in Richmond Park on Saturday in celebration of a significant achievement for the dedicated Snowy Valleys Heroes Inc team, with Master of Ceremonies, Cr James Hayes OAM, referring to Zita Vafiapulous as the “indefatigable” leader of this effort.
The release of the book is not just a testament to those who served, but also to the community that came together to honour them. The event, graced by various dignitaries and community members, was a poignant reminder of the sacrifices made by the men and women whose stories fill the pages of Snowy Valleys Heroes.
Mrs Vafiapulous said the journey to compile this monumental work began over two years ago when a dedicated group, initially comprising just five members and later expanding to nine, embarked on a mission to ensure that every individual who stepped up to serve their country was remembered. This meant meticulously documenting the names of all those who enlisted, regardless of whether they served or not, ensuring they had a rightful place in the book.
“We decided we wanted to write a book, and we wanted that book to be historic,” she said.
“We wanted it to show that every man and woman who put their hand up to serve had a place in our book. That meant every man and woman that enlisted, whether they got in or not. We have achieved that, our small group of people, very special people.”
People like Kerry Back, a local farmer, whose family dates back to the 1800s in this area.
“Kerry would come in from the farm at night and would sit, sometimes until midnight, reading newspapers to make sure that we had all of the names of those men and women who enlisted. Without Kerry, we wouldn’t have this book,” Mrs Vafiapulous said.
“We have completed it, it’s here and it’s a fabulous achievement for my team. They have worked tirelessly since we started this two-and-a-half years ago.
“Anything to do with veterans we will support as well as making sure we preserve the memories of all veterans, not just those who enlisted and those who got medals, but every single man and woman that has served for our country.”
Within the 745-page book are the names of 3363 people who enlisted, nine of which were women (nurses). Of the 2618 that went to war, 561 men did not return home.
“That’s 21 per cent of a whole generation that our Snowy Valleys lost,” Mrs Vafiapulous said.
“It is an incredible, incredible honour for us to be able to put this together for those men.”
From the presence of the Tumut Light Horse to the symbolic display of poppies gracing the Richmond Park lawns, every detail of the launch underscored the significance of remembering and honouring the past.
Over 3000 poppies were handcrafted – knitted or crocheted – by ladies from Tumut, Batlow and Adelong in representation Mrs Vafiapulous said of every man and woman that enlisted for our country.
Member for Riverina Michael McCormack praised the meticulous effort put into researching and documenting the book to ensure the legacy of the Snowy Valleys Heroes will be preserved for future generations.
“It’s really important that we remember our past, it’s really important that we relive what they did for our communities because, but for those men and women, we would not be here enjoying the peace, democracy and freedom that we tend to take for granted,” Mr McCormack said.
“Thank you for making sure we give dedication and gratitude to those who served in the First World War and conflicts before that.
“We should always remember our history because our history reflects our present and our history will shape our future.”
Dr Joe McGirr, Member for Wagga Wagga, said the book stands as a testament to the enduring legacy of those who served, ensuring that their contributions will never be forgotten.
“It’s a great honour to celebrate the stories of the veterans here today, particularly those who served from the Snowy Valleys between 1854 and 1920,” Dr McGirr said.
“It can be easy to lose track of the brave men and women who heeded their country’s call, often at great personal cost. In small communities of course heroes are always honoured and after the First World War we built so many memorials. Almost every town in Australia will have a memorial.
“After the Second World War, we stopped building memorials and we started building swimming pools and libraries and so on, but the point was that we were still remembering that sacrifice.
“But of course, as time goes by, we can get a little complacent and take for granted a little what people have done. So this project is a wonderful way of keeping alive that really important memory.
“It’s a remarkable result and the work that this team has done to bring this book together is a great service to history and to the families of those men and women whose stories have now been immortalised for future generations and as a document that will allow the rest of us to learn, pay our respects and gain a greater understanding of how this region played its part on the national and world stages.
“Among the thousands who have been recorded are boys as young as 14 who took up arms for their country, 21 Aboriginal veterans, and two VC recipients in Jack Ryan and Alby Lowerson.”
Also documented is Tumut’s Alexander Wallace, with Alexander’s son Bruce and his wife Judy present at the launch.
The front cover of the book features the gallant faces of soldiers Reginald Crane (Gundagai), Edmund Baragry (Tumbarumba), Arthur Rosenthal (Gundagai), Francis Back (Tumut), Albert Lowerson VC (Adelong), Edward (Jack) Ryan VC (Tumut) and William Chisholm (Adaminaby).
The Blakeney Miller Foundation’s generous sponsorship allowed for the publication of the book and for copies to be presented to Tumut High School, McAuley Catholic Central School and the Tumut RSL Sub-branch on launch day.
As part of the cultural aspect of the launch, Aunty Sue Bulger OAM gave the Welcome to Country while Uncle Stan Russell performed a smoking ceremony, with the Clontarf Foundation youth playing the digeridoo.
Uncle Pat Connolly, accompanied by the Stars Foundation from Tumut High School, sang ‘We Are Australian.’
Alison and Josh from the Kapooka Army Band delighted guests with their musical interludes, while Helen Abric performed the National Anthem.
The Last Post and Reveille were performed by Adam Farqhuarson on the bugle.
Snowy Valleys Council was represented by Cr Hayes, Cr John Larter, Cr Trina Thomson and Cr Grant Hardwick.
Cr Hayes announced that Tumut students will once again next year visit the Australian National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux in France, taking 20 of the handcrafted poppies with them and laying a wreath at the Anzac Day ceremony.
“We’ve been doing that, off and on, since 2003 and more than 300 young people from the Tumut area have been to Europe, culminating in a trip to the Western Front,” Cr Hayes said.
“It’s a wonderful thing to do and it’s a life changing experience for these young people.
“They will be attending the Dawn Service at Villers-Bretonneux which is a memorial to 10,000 Australian men whose bodies could not be found and buried. There are the names of more than 100 young men from this area on those walls.”
The Snowy Valleys Heroes research team includes Zita Vafiapulous, Phyllis Darragh, Kerry Back, Wayne Vafiapulous, Sue Bulger OAM, Diana Palmer, Catherine Davis and Helen Redic.
They have been ably assisted by Dorothy Mulvihill, Anne Back and Allan Tonkin.
“We have already started our second book which begins in 1921 and continues until 2025,” Mrs Vafiapulous said.
“Our launch date for that at the moment is 2027.”
To order a copy of Snowy Valleys Heroes, please email [email protected]
