Proudly wearing their medals, the Echuca Tech schoolmates said it was made even more special when they found a floral tribute laid at the Echuca cenotaph.
It read: “In memory of our veterans who served in Vietnam — special memories to those who did not come home. Lest We Forget — a wife who remembers (1965)”.
Mr James was a navy lieutenant on the troop carrier HMAS Sydney, taking soldiers to and from Vietnam.
Little did they know at the time that Mr Dixon was on one of those journeys to serve for a year as an infantry soldier.
Mr Dixon was part of the 2RAR/NZ (2nd Battalion of The Royal Australian Regiment New Zealand) in 1967-68 and was part of the Tet Offensive — a significant campaign of the Vietnam War.
“In my platoon a couple of blokes were killed,” Mr Dixon said.
“As you get older it fades a bit, but the memories are still there.”
Mr James said they were particularly glad they made the effort to visit the cenotaph after seeing the tribute.
“We’re especially grateful to the lady who laid that wreath; we found that very poignant,” he said.
“I joined the navy with 81 guys and 66 got through the three-and-a-half years training we did.
“Of that, 12 are dead — and it’s asbestos and things like that from servicing the ships — so we do remember them.”
Mr James and Mr Dixon, of Echuca District Vietnam Veterans’ Association of Australia, would usually attend a service each year on Vietnam Veterans’ Day (also known as Long Tan Day), but Moama RSL’s commemoration had to be cancelled because of NSW’s COVID-19 lockdown.
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