Rugby great speaks of dad’s war service

Tom Webcke during his Vietnam service aboard the HMAS Brisbane.

By Jeremy Sollars

Rugby League great Shane Webcke will be the guest speaker at a dinner and auction in July to help raise funds for the building of a new war memorial and dais in Leslie Park.
The project is being driven by the Warwick Community Development ANZAC Memorial Committee and aims to have the new memorial wall and dais in place in time for Anzac Day 2018.
The new memorial wall – to be built near the existing Leslie Park cenotaph – will commemorate every conflict in which Australians have served, from the Boer War to Afghanistan and the dais will be a permanent stage for Anzac Day and other wartime commemorations, with a temporary stage currently used at those events.
But a particular emphasis of the memorial wall itself is on recognising the service of younger veterans – in post-Vietnam conflicts like Somalia, Rwanda, Bougainville, East Timor, the Solomon Islands and Iraq and Afghanistan.
The fund-raising dinner and auction will be held at the Warwick RSL Memorial Club’s Kings Theatre on Saturday 15 July.
Many people know Shane Webcke’s father Tom lost his life in a workplace accident at the Warwick Woollen Mills, but some may be unaware he was a Vietnam veteran.
Leading Engineering Mechanic Tom Webcke served aboard the Royal Australian Navy destroyer HMAS Brisbane during the Vietnam conflict, with the ‘Brisbane’ having been deployed to support the US Seventh Fleet.
His son Shane will speak about his dad’s military service as well as his career in rugby league and life after the game.
Tickets for the dinner on Saturday 15 July are $50 per person and are available from the RSL, the Free Times and Daily News or by phoning memorial committee chairman Johnno Felton on 4661 8679 or 0467 612 342.
A ‘meet and greet’ from 5.30pm will be followed by a two-course meal, entertainment by DJ Vince and Yellow Cabs Warwick have donated two nights at the Gold Coast, a return stretch limo trip and complimentary bottle of wine to be raffled on the night.
An auction following the dinner will see a wide range of desirable items up for grabs, donated from the local area and including meat trays and firewood.
More prize donations by local businesses would also be welcomed by the committee.
Monetary donations for the building of the memorial wall and dais can be made through Warwick Credit Union.

Fund-raising progressing well
Fund-raising for the new memorial wall and dais is progressing, with just over $10,000 in the kitty so far, including $4000 announced just last week by the Federal Government as part of its ‘Saluting Their Service’ program.
All up around $80,000 is needed to complete the project, with the committee envisioning half will come in the form of grants and the other half from private business and individual donations.
Having a permanent dais in Leslie Park near the cenotaph will mean the council won’t have to hire a portable stage for Anzac Day and Remembrance Day commemorations.
Other groups in the region to benefit from the ‘Saluting Their Service’ funding include the Naval Association of Australia Stanthorpe and District Sub Section, which was also successful in securing two grants, worth $7000 in total, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Coral Sea.
And the Pratten Progress and Preservation Association will use a $4000 grant to install a new memorial in the town, to forever preserve and honour those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country in all conflicts.