Fremantle will recognise Australia’s Vietnam veterans to mark the 50th anniversary of the country’s withdrawal from the Vietnam War in a ceremony before the Len Hall Tribute Game against the Western Bulldogs on Friday.
Vietnam veteran Graham Edwards will recite The Ode, a man who lost both legs from a land mine explosion.
While it was extraordinary that Edwards merely survived, he has also lived a remarkable life since his return to Australia, continuing to serve his country as a State and National MP, serving as the WA president of the RSL and was the Chairman of the Australian Paralympic Committee for WA.
In 2016 he was recognised as WA’s Senior Australian of the Year.
Despite losing his legs in the war, Edwards says he feels fortunate to be one of the soldiers who were able to return home.
“I was very lucky to have survived the mine explosion. Generally, you stand on a mine, that’s the end of you,” Edwards said.
“I was fortunate, I survived. I was given an opportunity to live, so many of my mates who died in Vietnam, more than 520 of them and more than 3000 wounded.
“I was one of the fortunate ones who came home, and I think on a day like today, those of us who did come home from Vietnam can look at the honour roll and think how lucky we are that our names are not up there, and that’s a cause for us to commemorate those who did lose their lives.
“When I say The Ode, I always think of those men and women who have given their lives - ‘They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old’.
“So many of them died forever young and they are forever young in the memories of their families and in the memories of those of their mates.”
Unlike veterans from the First and Second World Wars, Vietnam veterans were not initially recognised for their service.
Fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 6pm for the Len Hall Tribute, while those who arrive by 5.30 will also have the opportunity to thank the Vietnam Veterans in attendance as they do a lap of honour.
“When many Vietnam Veterans came home, they walked back into a country that was divided within itself because of the nature of the war,” Edwards said.
“Many of them walked into the cold shoulder of indifference, ignorance and indeed some of them hostility.
“Fortunately, those days have gone, the welcome home parade in 1987 in Sydney was a belated welcome but it was a welcome that most Vietnam Veterans were very happy to receive.
“It was a day that enabled many of those to come to terms with their service in Vietnam.”
Fremantle fans will also have the opportunity to donate to the RSL at the game, with the Club raising funds for the Anzac Appeal.
“It’s important that people do dig deep and contribute and put a bit of money in the tins,” Edwards said.
“That money will be well used by the RSL to assist veterans of more recent eras to give them the support they need and to acknowledge that many veterans who come home, come home with the hidden wounds of war and these require treatment and they need a bit of support and they often need a bit of financial assistance to achieve that support.”
