THIRTY-ONE of Goulburn’s servicemen who died serving their country in World War One will be remembered in a unique way, with their names to be etched onto the side of two surfboats.
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Paul Murphy of Military History Tours Australia will also run a guided tour and will be taking a surfboat crew from Goulburn with him from April 23-26, 2015.
He is team captain, with boat captains Peter Greaves and Andrew Woolner plus crew members Rowan Begg, Oscar and Jack Cunningham, Richard Joyce, Stuart Joyce, Boyd Newby, Mac Paterson, Ben Pearson, Rob Sheekey, Dean Thompson, Mikael Webber and Aaron Wild. Each crew member is expected to raise $7,000 towards the cost of their involvement in the race, and once flights and other minor expenses are taken out of this amount, the remaining proceeds will go directly to the Rotary Club of Goulburn Mulwaree and then in turn be distributed back into the community through local charities and Rotary projects.
Rotary supporters from all over Goulburn include Can Assist, The Crescent School, Goulburn Base Hospital, Goulburn Breast Cancer Support Network, Goulburn MS Support Group, Goulburn Prostate Cancer Support Group, Riding for the Disabled Goulburn, Technical Aid for the Disabled and other individuals with specific needs unmet by other support groups.
Mr Murphy has also managed to secure at least five other surfboat crews from Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, the U.K and France to take part in the race.
The surfboat crews will race in six stages from the Dardanelles town of Eceabat down through the Dardenelles and the coastline of the Gallipoli Peninsula to ANZAC Cove on April 23 & 24, 2015.
Mr Murphy has also managed to get funding support from the Goulburn Soldiers Club.
Accommodation available to the surfboat crews will be on the MSC Lirica, a cruise ship that will cruise down the Bosphorus, across the Sea of Marmara and through the Dardanelles.
Participants in the surfboat races will have the chance to attend the Dawn Service at Gallipoli, conduct tours of each battlefield around the Gallipoli Peninsula, and will also get the chance to tour all the sights of Istanbul, including the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and experience lunch at the Topkapi Palace.
Prices will also include entry to the 100th Anniversary Ball to be hosted at the Istanbul Convention Centre on April 26, 2015.
The 31 men who died serving their country will be listed on the sides of the surfboats. They are Stanley Beer, William Bennett, Charles Bond, Edward Bryden, Reginald Compton, Richard Feeney, Thomas Frazer, Noel Gale, Albert Hall, Charles Horan, George Irwin, William Kelly DCM, Cecil Leeson, Thomas McGuirk, Percy Malley, John Martin, Alwyn Mozart, Austin Murray, Hilton Nicholls, Terence O’Brien, William Rodden, Aubrey Sherring, William Stacy, William (Selby) Stewart, Thomas Sweeney, Cecil (Ward) Weatherby, Eric Whiting, Harold Williamson, Robert Wornes, and Frederick Young.
There is also a ballot set up for those wishing to travel to ANZAC Cove in 2015. To access the ballot, visit www.gallipoli2015.dva.gov.au.
Places are limited, and there is a waiting list.
Sponsorship packages are available for the Goulburn Gallipoli 100 crew. To sign up as a sponsor, contact Rotary Club of Goulburn Mulwaree’s Sarah Ruberto on 0419 491 280, email her at sarah_ruberto@bigpond.com, or alternatively you can also contact member James Mifsud on 0418 960 395 or email him at trilla2@ bigpond.com.
And for more information on the Gallipoli 100 race, visit www.gallipoli100.com.au/site/Ho me.
