Karen McNamara (Dobell, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week, I was privileged to attend the official opening of the Anzac Centenary display at the Entrance Long Jetty RSL Sub Branch Military Museum, where I met descendants of locals who served during the First World War. I congratulate the museum volunteers for their commitment and dedication in keeping the Anzac spirit alive and well throughout Dobell.

The military museum was established in 1990 and is visited by bus tours, schools, community groups and the general public. The museum has an extensive display of military artefacts and memorabilia dating from the Boer War. Most items in the museum have been donated over the years by members of the RSL, returned service personnel, their next of kin and the public.

The Anzac Centenary display displays a German machine gun from the Western front, a photo album from Lance Corporal George Lionel Williamson, who survived the Gallipoli landing and an original leather Pickelhaube helmet from the World War I German forces.

In the lead-up to Anzac Day, the museum will welcome thousands of locals and school children to view the exhibits. Entry is free. Through this museum, Central Coast locals and visitors alike will have the opportunity to commemorate the centenary of Anzac and discover personal connections to the brave men and women who served our nation.

I would like to congratulate everyone who has been involved with this museum and also the Entrance Long Jetty Sub-Branch, which definitely has a commitment to our local community in keeping alive the Anzac spirit and also to returned servicemen who go into local schools and provide an excellent education.