Sit Down With Sam

Hi Readers

On the next page, you’ll read some profound words from the President of the RSL Mackay Sub Branch, Ken Higgins OAM. He said this to me while chatting quite frankly about his experience of being conscripted into the Australian Army during the Vietnam conflict at the innocent age of 20. The conversation genuinely changed the way I view war, veterans and commemorative occasions like Anzac Day.

I kept Ken’s story and stories just like his in mind on Anzac Day earlier this week, as the country stopped to reflect on the atrocities of war, the bravery it reveals in people and the sacrifices it forces people to make. Flick through the next few pages to see how the Mackay region marked this important day.

While telling Ken’s story to my father last weekend, he recommended The Odd Angry Shot, a 1979 Australian comedy war film following the experiences of Australian soldiers during the Vietnam War. While I haven’t had the chance to watch it, and I’m sure there are plenty of similarly important films, I thought I’d share his recommendation.

More and more of these Vietnam war stories will come to light throughout the year as the country commemorates 50 years since the 1973 proclamation of the end of Australian involvement in the Vietnam War. Services will be held by RSLs around the country, including right here in Mackay, in the month of August.

In the lead up to these services, Mackay Life hopes to work with Ken and the RSL Mackay Sub Branch to uncover the stories of Mackay’s Vietnam veterans. Personally, I’m looking forward to learning more about this conflict and sharing these stories with you.

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