Anzac Day 2021: Bathurst veterans happy to have parade and march back

No matter their age or their health, they make every effort to be involved in the commemorations.

This year was of particular importance, after all the Anzac Day plans had to be shelved in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While Bathurst's main services on Sunday still had restrictions, they were able to go ahead in somewhat normal fashion.

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And those servicemen and women were there to be part of it.

Veteran Sam Arthur was so dedicated to his country that he lied about his age to join the army.

"I joined the army when I was 15. I forged the papers and I served 27 years in the army. I was in the Royal Australian Engineers; I went to Vietnam and served two tours of New Guinea," he said.

The almost 86-year-old is a regular participant in Bathurst's Anzac Day parade and always sits proudly at the front of the crowd during the service.

Last year was a muted affair spent mainly at home, but on Sunday he rode in the front seat of an old military Jeep and waved proudly to the people dotting the parade route, including three of his great grandchildren.

Anzac Day commemorations were vastly improved compared to 2020, but Mr Arthur still missed the involvement of the local school children in the parade.

"I'll be disappointed there's no kids around on the street. I went out to on Friday, to see the school out there at Perthville, they had an Anzac Day service out there for the kids. That was very good, but this is very quiet," he said.

READ ALSO: Bathurst schools pay tribute to servicemen and women ahead of Anzac Day

Mr Arthur also attended the dawn service at the Carillon on Sunday, as did fellow Vietnam veteran Bob Triming, who served in the Royal Australian Navy.

It was a bitterly cold autumn morning, but they and other servicemen and women braved the conditions to pay their respects to those who have served and those whose lives were lost.

"There was a lot more people there than I had thought, quite a large crowd," Mr Triming said.

He also participated in the parade that marched from Bathurst RSL Club to the service in Kings Parade, and he did so alongside his wife, Kaye, who like him had served in the navy.

To Mr Triming, ANZAC Day means "memories, to see everyone, and especially to remember my dad, who had a lot of injuries and was a prisoner of war".

In addition to attending the services at the Carillon, Mr Triming went to the 2pm service at Sofala, where he was the emcee.

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