By Alana Mitchelson
OFFICER residents congregated on Friday 11 November, tying poppies to the memorial gates in honour of those who have died at war.
Rob Porter of the Officer and District Community Association opened the Remembrance Day service, followed by a speech from Cr Brett Owen and a prayer read by Betty Whiteside, the daughter of WWI returned soldier Sergeant Clair Whiteside and former local councillor.
Officer and District Community Association vice-president Annette Aldersea said Heritage College Year 11 student Shwetha Sukumar read a poem prior to sharing a minute’s silence.
“We had a great turn out of a few hundred people to our Remembrance Day Service,” she said.
“We had a large number of school children, which is extremely pleasing.
“Most present tied either a poppy or a sprig of rosemary to the Officer Memorial Gates which has become a tradition with our services in Officer.
“As always, it was a moving and lovely service.”
Students from Officer Secondary College acted as flag bearers while Officer Primary School students led the singing of the national anthem.
