Leslie Henry KEW-MING MM

KEW-MING, Leslie Henry

Service Number: 657
Enlisted: 11 May 1916
Last Rank: Sergeant
Last Unit: 23rd Infantry Battalion
Born: St Arnaud, Victoria, Australia, March 1897
Home Town: St Arnaud, North Grampians, Victoria
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Boot maker
Died: Massive stroke, Driving between Echuca and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 22 February 1960
Cemetery: Melbourne General Cemetery, Carlton
Memorials:
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World War 1 Service

11 May 1916: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private
20 Oct 1916: Embarked Private, 657, 2nd ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, HMAT Borda, Melbourne
20 Oct 1916: Involvement Private, 657, 2nd ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Borda embarkation_ship_number: A30 public_note: ''
28 Mar 1917: Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 23rd Infantry Battalion
5 May 1917: Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 657, 23rd Infantry Battalion, SW shoulder - slight
14 May 1917: Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 23rd Infantry Battalion
17 Jun 1917: Promoted Corporal, 23rd Infantry Battalion
22 Feb 1918: Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 23rd Infantry Battalion, Temporary Sgt from 1/10/1917
23 May 1918: Honoured Military Medal, 1st Passchendaele, For bravery in the field for his actions and leadership, whilst wounded, during the digging of a communication trench to new captured front line at Broodseinde on the 9th of October 1917
6 Sep 1919: Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant
4 Dec 1919: Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 657, 23rd Infantry Battalion

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Biography contributed by Evan Evans

From In Memory Of

In Memory of Sergeant Leslie Henry Kew-Ming MM, 23rd Battalion.

He was a bootmaker from St. Arnaud, Victoria, prior to enlistment, and embarked from Melbourne with the 5th Reinforcements, Anzac Cyclist Battalion, aboard HMAT Borda on the 20th of October 1916.

Sergeant Kew-Ming was promoted several times during his service in France and Belgium and was awarded the Military Medal for bravery in the field for his actions and leadership, whilst wounded, during the digging of a communication trench to newly captured front line at Broodseinde on the 9th of October 1917.

He survived the war, returning to Australia in 1919. Sergeant Kew-Ming was one of an estimated 200 Chinese Australians who served with the First Australian Imperial Force.

He was a great footballer and sprinter. Leslie was regularly picked for representative football teams, and in 1927 he was among the best in a Bendigo League team which defeated a combined VFL team by one point. He also played for North Melbourne.

He died in February 1960 from a massive stroke whilst driving back to Melbourne after visiting friends in Echuca.

Rest In Peace Sergeant Leslie Henry Kew-Ming MM.

Lest We Forget.

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