We will always remember them
At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.
By Moth Barry Roper
Since as long as I can remember and even before that, the Moths of Mills Bomb and Picardy Bazooka shellholes have held their annual Armistice Day Memorial in Warner Beach and Umbogintwini.
The Mills Bomb parade and service took place at 11am on the morning of the Sunday nearest to 11 November and the Picardy Bazooka parade and service took place at the Memorial Plinth in the Umbogintwini Village near the bowling greens.
Sadly the Umbogintwini parade does not take place after the plinth was moved to the Mills Bomb Shellhole entrance to make way for the developments of Arbour Crossing, as it was feared that it would be vandalised or, worse, the bronze plaques stolen for scrap.
This year is the first year that the Mill Bomb and Picardy Bazooka shellholes have not had any WWII veterans on parade, as our last veteran answered the ‘sunset call’ earlier this year and it is now the Rhodesians and Border War veterans who hold the torch up high.
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In spite of the weather threatening on Sunday, the traditional march and service took place as planned. Several years ago the sergeant major of the Mills Bomb Shellhole, the late Moth Jock Sutherland, a true Scotsman, was asked by a young Moth when it was raining if they would still be marching and Moth Jock replied in his broad Scots accent “They fought and died in the mud and the rain laddie, so we will march in the mud and the rain for them laddie.
The march by tradition goes down the main road in Warner Beach led by this year a piper and through the subway to the shellhole. Every year the parade at Mills Bomb Shellhole goes from strength to strength being joined by Moths and other veterans.
This year the following organisations attended – Moth Shellhole Mills Bomb, Picardy Bazooka and Cinder City (Sea Park). Other associations who attended were the South African Legion and South African Legion Bikers Association, South African Police Services, South African Special Forces Association, 32 Battalion Veterans Association, Rhodesian ex-servicemen, Scouts, Kingsburgh Lions Club, veterans’ family members and members of the public.
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