A vision to build a war memorial at Drummond Park that has been eight years in the planning, is about to become a reality.
Local John de Bruin and his small band of helpers have been working with the RSL Sub Branch Cobar committee and Cobar Shire Council to build the memorial.
“In 2015 it was announced that we would build a War Memorial for Cobar,” John said.
“Having formed a close connection with the HMAS Rankin submarine crew, which started in 2016 with a Cobar visit by Commander Doug Theobald and 15 crew, I believe it’s a project that needs to be completed to honour those past and present that fought for our freedom.
“My father always taught me: ‘Leave a place in better state than when you arrived there’.
“This is part of that process,” he said.
John began fundraising in earnest for the project in 2018 with the first Running on Empty Festival (ROEF) and it was during this festival that John met stonemason and car enthusiast, Ben Crombie from McMurtrie and Co in Orange, who was brought on board to help build Cobar’s War Memorial.
John said Ben’s business has plenty of experience in building and restoring memorials, including having built the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park, London.
Coupled with the proceeds of last year’s ROEF event, along with a few other fundraisers, the committee now has enough money to go ahead with the project which will be completed with assistance from Cobar Shire Council.
It’s also taken a research team, headed up by Kay Stingemore and Suzie Wells, nearly as long to compile a comprehensive list of names to be included on the memorial.
To date they have 535 names of Cobar residents who served in World War I, 368 from World War II, and 12 each from the Vietnam and Korean wars and their research is ongoing.
The new memorial is to be incorporated with the existing cenotaph which was a project of the Cobar Sub-branch of the Returned Services League and was unveiled on Anzac Day 1986 by the Federal Member Noel Hicks.
Then Sub-branch president Don Bridle said the memorial commemorated the sacrifice and deeds of young Australian ANZACs at Gallopoli and of “the sons and daughters of ANZACs” during World War II, Korea, Malaya, Borneo and the Vietnam conflicts.
John said the memorial will take four months to construct and will be laid in place after the area around the existing cenotaph has been re-designed to include better access with new wheelchair friendly paths.
“We’re hoping it will all be in place for Anzac Day next year,” John said.
