Henry Pike (Bowman, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Hansard source

Next week I will be launching a new community initiative in the Redlands. There are, of course, some stories that should never be forgotten, but sometimes, sadly, they are. Private William Arthur Mobbs's is one of those stories. Born in Brisbane in 1891, the eldest of 13 children, to a Queensland family defined by service, he stepped forward when his country called. In 1916, at the age of 25, he enlisted in the AIF. He would spend more than three years overseas, including on the Western Front in France, serving with the 3rd Australian Divisional Ammunition Column, doing the hard, dangerous work of keeping guns supplied.

When he came home, he, like so many others, got on with life. Then, more than 20 years later, when the world was again at war, he stepped forward yet again. In 1940, at 49 years of age, he enlisted for a second time, not because he had to but because he believed it was the right thing to do. After the war, he settled in Birkdale and he worked as a labourer. He built a quiet life in my community, and, when he passed in 1960, he was laid to rest at Cleveland Cemetery.

Here's the part that should give us all pause. Despite serving Australia in two world wars, his grave was never marked—no headstone, no recognition, nothing to tell the story of a man who stepped forward not once but twice when his country needed him. Thanks to the work of the volunteers of the Australian Remembrance Army, this has now been uncovered. In Cleveland Cemetery alone, they have identified 19 unmarked graves of veterans, Private Mobbs being one of them.

Next week, I will launch, with the Remembrance Army volunteers, the Redlands Remembers campaign, a community effort to install a proper military headstone for Private Mobbs—something permanent, something dignified and something that says clearly that this man served his country and is remembered. A $620 contribution has been made available through the Australian government's Marking (First World War) Private Graves Grants Program—an initiative of the previous coalition government—but it does not cover the full amount of manufacturing and installing a fitting memorial for this local veteran, so we're asking the community to step in as well. Our goal is simple. We're looking to raise $5,000 to ensure that William Arthur Mobbs is properly honoured. I'll be contributing, and I'll be asking locals to make a small contribution too as we approach Anzac Day because, after serving Australia in two world wars, Private Mobbs deserves better than an unmarked grave. And, more broadly, there are thousands of veterans across the country in the same position. At the current pace, it will take generations to fix that. That is simply not good enough. This is something we can do in my little corner of the country to say that this service matters, that it was recognised and that it is not ever going to be forgotten.

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