Today I welcome home six young Tasmanians who have recently returned from the Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize Study Tour to the Western Front in France and Belgium.
The Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize aims to promote and preserve the meaning of the ANZAC spirit in the Tasmanian community.
The Prize honours Frank MacDonald MM as a representative of Tasmania's World War One veterans and the broader community of veterans.
The 2013-14 Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize recipients were:
Supporting the students on the study tour were teachers Jan Hunt and Leif Shea, both from Ogilvie High School; Mr Robert Dick, who represented the RSL; and the Hon Craig Farrell MLC, who was representing the Tasmanian Parliament. Two officers from the Department of Premier and Cabinet also acted as tour leaders for the group.
As part of the tour, the students laid wreaths at ceremonies at the Arc de Triomphe, the ANZAC Day Dawn Service and town service at Villers Bretonneux, and at the Menin Gate. The students also attended significant World War One sites such as Fromelles, Pozieres and Le Hamel.
A major aspect of the Prize includes each student undertaking research on an individual soldier who fought on the Western Front. While in France and Belgium, the group visited the gravesite of each of these soldiers and the students shared the soldier's story with the group.
This research and other aspects of the tour will be compiled into a book to help contribute to a greater understanding of the role of Tasmanians in World War One, ensuring the knowledge of our war history is passed down through the generations.
As we approach the Centenary of the Gallipoli landings in 2015, we must work hard to ensure the stories of our soldiers and the sacrifices they made are not lost, as these students have done.
The event will commence at 3.00pm at the Learning Services North Office, Inveresk Railyards, Launceston and conclude at 3.45pm.
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