Anne McEwen (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to belatedly extend my congratulations to all those Australians who were recognised for their contributions to our nation in this year’s Australia Day Honours. I would also like to place on record my appreciation to the people recognised by those awards, who in some way or another have demonstrated courage, selflessness, dedication and service to their community. As the Prime Minister said at the Australian of the Year Awards this year:

These are great Australian values and you see them writ large in Australian heroes past, Australian heroes today and those of tomorrow.

I would also like to acknowledge our Australian of the Year 2009, Professor Mick Dodson AM, a tireless campaigner for justice for our Indigenous Australians and a fearless critic of governments—a truly worthy recipient of the accolade he received.

Tonight I would like to take some time, however, to acknowledge and congratulate one particular recipient of the medal of the Order of Australia this year, a man who has definitely demonstrated those Australian traits of courage and service. Mr Raymond Gordon Baldwin, of Glenelg in South Australia, was honoured for his service to veterans and their families through a range of roles with the 2nd/27th Battalion Ex-servicemen’s Association. The 2nd/27th, which was also my father’s battalion, served during the Second World War. At the conclusion of the war Ray Baldwin went on to become involved further with the Australian Army and he also became editor of the 2nd/27th Battalion’s journal, the Brown and Blue Diamond, so named for the battalion’s insignia. In his role of editor Ray Baldwin became the constant link between the battalion’s past and future, maintaining the lines of communication between all those who fought with the 2nd/27th Battalion and also a contact point for their families.

The 2nd/27th was uniquely South Australian. It was a battalion which served Australia with esteem and pride . The battalion’s headquarters opened for the first time in May 1940 in the Adelaide Hills town of Woodside. All of its founding members were from South Australia. After five months, the battalion—Ray included—left Woodside for Melbourne, bound overseas for Egypt via India. The soldiers’ training was completed in Palestine, before their first operational assignment bolstering defences along the Egypt-Libya frontier against an unexpected German attack. The battalion’s first offensive operation—the invasion of Syria and Lebanon—began on 8 June 1941. In Syria, at only 19 years of age, Ray was amongst others who had their first experiences of fighting at close quarters when the battalion took part in the coastal advance against French forces, including the French Foreign Legion. After that campaign, for which they later received recognition, the battalion remained in Syria on garrison duties until early 1942, when they left to take part in the war against Japan in the Pacific.

Some of the hardest and most costly battles of World War II were to be fought against the Japanese in Papua New Guinea between 1942 and 1943. Fighting in perilous conditions along the Kokoda Track, the battalion suffered heavy casualties due to the strength of the Japanese forces. Ray was one of the injured, severely concussed and wounded by shrapnel from hand grenades. But, not letting the injuries deter him, Ray left the hospital he had been evacuated to as soon as he could walk again and returned to join his unit fighting the assaults on the well-prepared Japanese positions at Gona. This is a story we hear time and again in the histories of World War II and especially the war in PNG: a story of men who were injured but who soon afterwards and with minimal recovery time returned to battle to support their fellow service personnel. Of course, many of them were not lucky enough to survive to return to the battlefront. Official figures say that the 2nd/27th Battalion landed at Port Moresby in August 1942 with some 34 officers and 743 other ranks. The battalion returned home to Australia early in 1943 after the recovery and burial of the Australian and Japanese dead with only three officers and 87 other ranks. With only relatively minor injuries, Ray Baldwin was one of the lucky ones.

Ray was discharged from the 2nd/27th in November 1945 but not before returning to predominantly patrol-only campaigns in Papua New Guinea and Borneo between 1943 and 1945. Following his discharge, Ray was restless and struggled to return to a regular civilian lifestyle, finding it hard to work in the confined office space required of his glass trade. His trade, however, did enable him to join a special group, the German and Italian Voyage Guard. Once again he set off, accompanying the German and Italian prisoners of war from their camps in Australia back to their home countries, travelling to England, Scotland, Japan and elsewhere on the way. It must have been the beginning of Ray’s subsequent love of travel.

In 1948, Ray enlisted in the Australian Regular Army as a training officer. He spent the next 20 years in various postings, training cadets, national servicemen and soldiers embarking on overseas trips. He fought in yet another war as part of the Malaya-Borneo campaign in the early 1960s, before being placed in charge of the Mount Gambier depot of the 27th Battalion RSAR. The last few years of his duty was served with the Adelaide university regiment, before he was finally discharged in December 1970. From the Army, Ray went on to play a vital role within the South Australian education department as an attendance officer in the northern region. His work with young offenders gained him much respect and admiration amongst the community as he demonstrated an extensive knowledge and experience of youth, understanding their different individual personalities and needs. Ray’s work mentoring, educating and guiding resulted in many of these young people becoming valued members of their community.

After a final retirement from working life in 1980, Ray selflessly accepted the position of editor for the 2nd/27th Battalion AIF Ex-Servicemen’s Association journal. The first journal had been published in 1948 as a way of keeping all the close-knit former members of the unit informed of people’s movements and news updates—and in later years of members who became deceased. It also announced wedding anniversaries and birthdays. The journal was described as the lifeblood of the ex-servicemen’s association. Ray, who was editor for more than 20 years, was described as its heart and soul. Originally using an old portable typewriter to compose the journal, Ray went on to learn how to use a computer to help improve the journal. He spent hours going through mail and arranging it in an appealing and informative fashion and finding interesting facts to incorporate into the journal. He also had a great liking for jokes and they would often turn up in the journal to entertain its readers. Importantly, Ray Baldwin showed a devotion to the association that was unwavering.

Anzac Day 2008 was the final reunion of the 2nd/27th Battalion AIF Ex-Servicemen’s Association, as the association had to be wound down due to dwindling numbers. It was also the year the final edition of the Brown and Blue Diamond was published. The final battalion association farewell was held in Adelaide. I was fortunate enough to attend and witness this chapter of our wartime history come to a close. A message of thanks from the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, to the battalion was relayed to the battalion members and their families by me. It was an apt tribute to commemorate those ordinary citizens who made extraordinary efforts and who suffered unbelievable hardships, too many of whom died to help make us what we are today as a nation.

In a move of sincerity and kindness, the battalion association donated the last of its funds to a school in Efogi in Papua New Guinea, a place well known to anyone who has walked the Kokoda Track and just alongside where one of the battalion’s major battles was fought. The people of Efogi assisted the Australian troops during the war and the association felt it befitting to in some way try and return the favour. The funds contributed to new school desks and essential school needs, and a plaque has been erected on wall of the school to offer eternal memories and thanks to the people of Efogi. Speaking in a local newspaper after receiving his OAM, Ray Baldwin said that he was surprised but pleased to receive the award. He said, ‘I felt a great sense of pride and satisfaction.’ I would like to again congratulate Ray Baldwin, enlistment No. SX2905, and thank him for his hard work and determination to continue the legacy of the 2nd/27th Battalion.