Remembering our heroes
The poignant tune of the bugle will sound out across the Mandurah War Memorial on Friday, as thousands gather to remember the country’s fallen servicemen and women.
Every day former soldier Wade Bergersen, who will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with fellow veterans at this year’s dawn service, remembers his years as a soldier.
The former Australian Army corporal and Mandurah RSL member said April 25 brought mixed emotions.
His experiences of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, and the unrest in East Timor later, left him scarred but he said he also felt proud of what Australian forces had achieved.
“Anzac Day is a good opportunity to get together with the other guys – it can be hard as well because you think about all the things which happened,” Mr Bergersen said.
“But it’s so important to remember those who lost their lives.”
Mr Bergersen said he enlisted in the army in 1993, when he was 18, and completed his training in Singleton in New South Wales before he was sent to the African nation.
He said he later completed two tours of East Timor, in 1999 and 2002, before spending the next several years teaching young recruits.
“It’s important to remember the guys that have been lost, but also the guys who are having a hard time,” he said.
Mr Bergersen was medically discharged eight years ago, after he was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder as a result of his experiences in Africa.
Mandurah RSL ceremonial officer Derek Pickering said more than 10,000 residents were expected at the dawn service on Friday.
