Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Bruce Townsend was just 14 when his father, a World War I veteran, died in a rail accident in 1939. The eldest of four boys in an era when his widowed mother did not qualify for a pension, he quickly realised his school days were over.

“I knew I would have to find work to support my family,” he says.

At his father’s funeral, he recalls meeting two gentlemen from Legacy.

“I remember them telling me that they would help Mum and guide her,” Bruce said. “They also told me they would help me find a job, which they did.”

Not long after he started working for an Adelaide produce merchant, those two gentlemen – Legacy volunteers known as “Legatees” – advised Bruce that they had also secured him an accountancy scholarship Puckapunyal Army Camp through the Everyman’s Welfare Service. Bruce, pictured right, has enormous via correspondence. With Legacy’s continued support, Bruce went on to complete his studies and later work as an accountant. “All four of us were Legacy kids,” Bruce proudly says. The sprightly now 95-year old would later go on to serve in the Royal Australian Air Force, as well as in the welfare office at the Puckapunyal Army Camp through the Everyman’s Welfare Service.

Bruce has enormous admiration for Legacy and its volunteer legatees.

“The Legatees regularly visited us when we were kids and we really respected them,” he said.

“They were such a stabilising influence on Mum and her finances, and they were really positive role models for my brothers and me.”

Established in 1923, Legacy is dedicated to caring for the families of veterans who have lost their lives, as well as dependants of members of the Australian Defence Force incapacitated as a result of their military service.

Legacy Week, which is now being celebrated, is an iconic appeal to raise awareness and funds for veterans’ families. Due to COVID-19 , for the first time in its history Legacy Week will be celebrated as a virtual appeal.

According to Peter Ali, CEO of Legacy South Australia and Broken Hill, Legacy Week 2020 is looking very different.

“Unlike previous years, there are no street collections nor selling of badges in shopping centres,” Mr Ali said. “Instead, we are asking and relying on the public to donate or buy their virtual badge online.

“Legacy badges may be small, but the funds they raise make a big impact to the lives of those who have given up so much, and need us to continue to stand by their side during these tough times.”

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