FOR Mildura veteran Josh Fraser, the importance of Anzac Day is reflected in the excitement his five-year-old son Jax gets from marching alongside his dad every year.
“The whole week he will ask, ‘Are we matching for Anzac Day today?’ I want to keep that excitement going for as long as I can,” Mr Fraser said.
Mr Fraser was only 17 when he decided he wanted to join the army, celebrating his 18th birthday at the Kapooka Army Base.
As for why he decided to enlist, Mr Fraser said he has never really been entirely sure of the answer.
“It was just something I sort of always felt I needed to do,” he said.
“It might be that my Pop had six brothers that all fought in WWII.
“Luckily all six came back, but maybe when we went and saw him and saw their pictures up on the wall, I don’t know if that had something to do with it.”
Mr Fraser served in the Philippines in the Second Commando Regiment before he was deployed to the Middle East in 2014 for humanitarian aid operations, just as ISIS was beginning to emerge.
He was then medically discharged in September 2019, moving back home to Mildura.
“I still miss the brotherhood, you definitely get really close with the people you work with,” Mr Fraser said.
“Even some of the other veterans that I have met outside who I never actually served with, you form very close bonds even once you are out.”
That camaraderie is something that Mr Fraser highly values, particularly with fellow members of the Mildura RSL.
“Some of the other fellas that I am on the committee with, a lot of them served well before me, but if I pick up the phone and need help, I know that they will answer,” he said.
Describing Anzac Day as a “very important tradition that I feel we need to carry on”, Mr Fraser said keeping the memories of those who made the ultimate sacrifice alive in future generations why the day means so much.
“It’s amazing to see a lot of the schools get behind it even more so, putting on their own ceremonies and that sort of thing,” he said.
“It’s so those traditions stay alive, and all those that have come before us, are here now and are still to come, will be remembered for the future.”
