Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Born at Cleve on 2 February 1917, Ray was the son of Cleve hotel-keepers Jane Catherine White and Thomas Ambrose Joseph Commane.

The 22 year old laborer enlisted at Renmark on 23 October 1939 and was posted to Operating Signal Section at Woodside. A month later he entrained for Melbourne where he was posted to 1st Australian Corps of Signals at Broadmeadows. On 2 July 1940 Ray was appointed a Lance Corporal, a rank he would relinquish at his own request six months later.

Ray embarked from Melbourne aboard “Strathallan” on 13 August 1940 and disembarked in Bombay, India, on 3 September. The unit remained in Bombay for seventeen days before moving to Deolali. Ray disembarked in Palestine on 18 October 1940 and four months later, as a linesman with No.1 Operating Section No.2 Company 1st Australian Corps Signals, embarked for Greece. After a short campaign in Greece in which 320 Australians were killed and 2085 taken prisoner, the unit returned to the Middle East, and nine months later, again aboard "Strathallan", returned to Australia and Ray disembarked in Adelaide on 17 March 1942. From 20 May until 6 June 1942 Ray went Absent Without Leave and as punishment was confined to barracks for 18 days and forfeited 18 days pay.

On 12 August 1942 Ray embarked from Brisbane aboard USS "John Har"t and disembarked in Port Moresby on the 20th. Ray’s first bout of malaria occurred in February when he was evacuated to 2/9 Australian General Hospital at Port Moresby for eight days, and then to 2/113 Convalescent Depot for another six days. In April a reoccurrence saw him evacuated to 2/5 AGH for fifteen days and then to 2/133 Convalescent Depot for two months before embarking from Port Moresby aboard "Duntroon" and disembarking in Townsville.

Two months after returning to Townsville, and relocating to Victoria, he was evacuated to 115 AGH at Heidelberg, again with malaria, for sixteen days and then to 107 Convalescent Depot. Within two weeks he was evacuated to 30 ACH and then 107 ACH. Ray again went AWL and received 7 days confinement to barracks and forfeited two days pay. From 107 ACD Ray was evacuated to Victoria General Details Depot and on 12 October evacuated to Mildura Base Hospital.

Ray finally marched out to a unit on 1 November 1943 when he joined 1 Australian Signals Training Battalion via General Details Depot at Caufield, Melbourne. Within three weeks he had returned to Brisbane for “Line and Cable Jointing Serials”.

Diagnosed with “anxiety state post malaria debility” Ray returned to South Australia in January 1944 for a Final Medical Board. The diagnosis of splenomegaly was changed to “Anxiety state” when the Final Medical Board was held at 105 Australian General Hospital. Ray was discharged medically unfit on 4 June 1944.

Ray married Mary Graves on 28 December 1966, at the age of 49. He died on 26 September 2001, aged 84, and is buried in Lillydale Memorial Park, Melbourne.