Patriots were able to properly pay their respects to servicemen and women past and present for the first time this year, with Remembrance Day marking a return to some semblance of normality.
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It was the first proper ceremony the Wagga RSL sub-branch had been able to hold all year, after Anzac Day was cancelled in April due to coronavirus restrictions.
Making up for lost time was veteran Reg Hearne, who said the Remembrance Day ceremony made him feel as though life was back to normal for the first time since lockdown.
"Remembrance Day is the start of normality I think," Mr Hearne said.
"We've never experienced anything like this before, but it looks like things are starting to get better."
Riverina Lighthorse Brigade's Tony Hobbs came resplendent in his authentic World War I uniform, complete with army belt, emu feather, and leather riding boots.
Mr Hobbs said he sorely missed the Anzac Day service this year, but did his bit to honour the diggers by riding his horse up and down his block, attracting stares from the neighbourhood.
"We're keeping the legends alive, we go to promotions, Anzac parades, and Remembrance Day services on horseback as they did in the First World War," Mr Hobbs said.
"I've been riding a horse since I was a knee-high grasshopper. I spent a lot of time on outback cattle stations and always admired the warriors on horses."
Army Everyman Milton Wilson said it had been a tough year at the army base due to COVID, and that the Everyman team had been working overtime to boost morale.
"We go out in the field, around the camp, down the hospital area and taking down biscuits and lollies and giving it to them. They love it," Mr Wilson said.
Riverina senior naval officer Bill Mikhail said it had been a tumultuous year for the sailors, but that the crew had proven resilient.
"It's definitely been tough, but we're taught to be adaptable, flexible, and to roll with the punches," Lieutenant Commander Mikhail said.
Wagga RSL sub-branch president David Gardiner said it was an "excellent" ceremony, with a strong turnout and ideal weather conditions.
However, he said people were mostly just glad that there was a ceremony at all, following the shock cancellation of Anzac Day.
Mr Gardiner said there was a new heightened appreciation for such ceremonies, now that they could no longer be taken for granted.
'We had lots of people coming up and telling us how nice it was to see us selling poppies in the lead-up to Remembrance Day," Mr Gardiner said.
"It makes all the work you put in worthwhile."
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Kenji Sato
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
