By Alesha Capone
Many Wyndham families will pay their respects on ANZAC Day by standing in their driveways to observe a minute’s silence on Saturday morning.
Although the Covid-19 pandemic means most residents cannot attend a traditional dawn service, a community-led campaign for Australians to mark ANZAC Day on their driveways or balconies has taken off across the nation.
Sisters Megan and Sarah Bamforth will both be standing in their family’s Hoppers Crossing driveway on Saturday morning.
The girls will be joined by their mother Sherryn and cousin Kylie Walker, who is the executive officer and squadron leader of the Australian Air Force Cadets (AAFC).
Megan, 15, is an AAFC Cadet Sergeant, while her sister is a former Cadet Flight Sergeant (young people age out of the cadets after they turn 18).
Their family has a strong history of military service.
“My great-grandfather’s name was Bruce Walker, he was a Corporal in the army and served in Papa New Guinea during WWII,” Megan said.
“My great-nanny Gene was in the Air Force as general service, at the Laverton Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base.
“My other great-grandfather, from my grandfather’s side, was a merchant in the navy during WWI.”
Megan said she and her family usually attended the ANZAC Day March in Melbourne, and the dawn services in Werribee or Sunshine.
“ANZAC Day, to me, is about remembering the soldiers that sacrificed their lives for our country and also for those who came back from protecting our country,” she said.
“Each year the Air Force Cadets go to the top of the Shrine of Remembrance and we form the guard of honour with the Australian flags at the end of the march, being a part of ANZAC Day is a very personal thing to my whole family and we will do it for many years to come.”
Megan said that on Saturday morning, she and her family were planning to listen to ABC radio’s broadcast of the Melbourne dawn service, as they stood in their driveway.
“I’m going to write letters to everyone in my street, to ask them to stand at the end of their driveways and join in,” she said.
