Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Biography of Lance Corporal Alick Walter Stephens (1915–1993)

Alick Walter Stephens was born on 3 October 1915 in Marryatville, South Australia, the son of Stephen Jabez Francis Stephens and Jessie Adelaide Mason. He grew up in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide and was working as a porter with the South Australian Railways when World War II broke out. A Baptist by faith, Alick was 24 years old, single, and living at the Peterborough railway station when he enlisted.

On 2 July 1940, at Adelaide, Alick volunteered for service in the Second Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.) and was allocated the service number SX7509. He was posted to the 2/43rd Australian Infantry Battalion, part of the 9th Division. Following training at Woodside and other locations, he embarked from Australia on 29 December 1940, arriving in the Middle East on 31 January 1941. His service there included participation in key campaigns in North Africa and the Middle East, during which time he rose to the rank of Lance Corporal.

After returning to Australia in early 1943, Alick was deployed to New Guinea in August that year, serving in difficult tropical conditions that included bouts of illness such as malaria. He undertook specialist training, qualifying in Regimental Signals duties with a Distinguished classification, scoring 87% in written and 96% in practical examinations.

In May 1945, Alick sailed to Borneo, participating in the Labuan and Brunei operations during the final months of the war. He served overseas for a total of 1,340 days, with a further 607 days of active service within Australia. His total service period amounted to 1,947 days.

Alick was discharged from the Australian Army on 30 October 1945, his release authorised due to long service. By this time, he had married Kathleen Clare Priest, a South Australian woman born on 25 February 1922 in Goodwood to Percy Charles Priest and Violet Walden. The couple married in 1945 while Alick was still in uniform. They would go on to raise a family, including sons Pete and Rob.

In later life, Alick and Kathleen lived in Payneham South, South Australia. Alick passed away on 8 February 1993, aged 77, at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. He was laid to rest at Enfield Memorial Park, in the Eastern Niche Wall No. 2, Sub Section RSL, Wall & Row AA, Site 2. Kathleen survived him by fifteen years, passing away on 14 April 2008 at the age of 86. She was interred in the same cemetery, in Eastern Niche Wall No. 2, Wall & Row OB, Site 15.

Biography by Trevor Pyatt 14/08/2025