In the Cold Light of Dawn, Monash Remembers
Dawn services draw thousands as Monash communities honour generations of service and sacrifice.
Thousands of residents gathered across the City of Monash before sunrise on Saturday to mark Anzac Day, attending dawn services at cenotaphs in Glen Waverley, Clayton and Oakleigh in a powerful display of community remembrance.
Photo: Izy Rajapakshe | Monash Herald
At the Glen Waverley Cenotaph, where our team from The Monash Herald was on site, locals stood shoulder‑to‑shoulder in the cold morning air. The mood was solemn and steady as families, veterans, school groups and newly arrived residents fell into near‑silence, listening as the first notes of the Last Post drifted across the reserve.
A City Forged in Service
Few municipalities carry as deep a connection to Australia’s military heritage than the City of Monash, named for General Sir John Monash — the volunteer soldier and civil engineer who rose to become Australia’s most senior commander during the First World War. Monash led the Australian Corps to decisive victories at Hamel, Amiens and the Hindenburg Line in 1918, was knighted in the field by King George V, and upon returning to Melbourne became the driving force behind the Shrine of Remembrance and the ANZAC Day commemorations we observe today.
Photo: Izy Rajapakshe | Monash Herald
Monash’s personal connection to this area runs deep. He oversaw construction of the Outer Circle railway terminating at Oakleigh and purchased property in the district. Without his tireless advocacy for returned soldiers, these annual commemorations may well have faded into history.
The communities now forming the City of Monash sent hundreds of men and women to serve in both World Wars, and their sacrifice is recorded in memorials across our suburbs. The Oakleigh Honour Trees along Drummond Street, planted for each local man who served in World War I, still stand as living tributes. The Cenotaph in Warrawee Park and the Oakleigh RSL, opened in 1922, were built to honour the fallen. Memorial gates at Oakleigh Primary School remind students daily of the cost of freedom.
In Glen Waverley, the Memorial Gates on Central Reserve record the names of local servicemen. The Mount Waverley Avenue of Honour along High Street Road, a memorial plaque for Private F.C. Ross at the corner of Blackburn and England Roads, and a stained glass window at St Stephen’s Anglican Church honouring parish servicemen all bear witness to the district’s contribution. In Clayton and Notting Hill, Avenues of Honour along Carinish Road and Blackburn Road respectively pay similar tribute.
When the Second World War came, a new generation from these same streets answered the call, serving across North Africa, the Pacific, Europe and South-East Asia. The local RSL sub-branches became lifelines for returned servicemen and their families for decades afterward.
Photo: Izy Rajapakshe | Monash Herald
Among the most stirring contributions to this year’s services was the Melbourne High School Cadet Band, whose young musicians provided impeccable musical accompaniment. The school’s cadet unit, among the oldest and most respected in the state, demonstrated that ANZAC values are being passed to the next generation with pride and discipline.
Equally powerful was the performance of award-winning singer-songwriter Kelly Newton-Wordsworth, whose song Lest We Forget — written to honour her grandfathers and all who served — captured the struggle and sorrow of war with rare beauty. Her voice, unwavering in the dawn light, reminded every person present that behind every name on every memorial stands a human story that must never be forgotten.
A tradition carried forward
Anzac Day, marking the 1915 Gallipoli landing, has grown into the nation’s most solemn day of remembrance, honouring Australians who have served in every conflict since the Boer War. With the number of surviving Second World War veterans dwindling, many at Saturday’s services spoke of a renewed responsibility to preserve the tradition
Photo: Izy Rajapakshe | Monash Herald
If attendance is any measure, that responsibility is being met. Young cadets stood alongside elderly veterans; schoolchildren clutched rosemary sprigs; families new to Australia paused to observe a ritual that has become part of the country’s civic fabric.
The Anzac spirit, far from fading, appears to be finding new resonance in a diverse and modern Monash.
Photo: Izy Rajapakshe | Monash Herald
To the veterans and serving members of the Australian Defence Force who call the City of Monash home, the message from the community was unmistakable: your service is honoured, your sacrifices remembered.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.
We will remember them.