Vale Dr Edward Fleming 1925-2021

Dr. Edward Fleming passed away on Saturday 27th November 2021. (Funeral details below)

Service Brief: E.L. Edward FLEMING 430651 Pilot 550 SQDN 21 OTU

“Edward had a long and productive career and contributed to an important element of recognition for Odd Bods.Our thoughts and best wishes to his family at this time.”

Edward was born at St.Kilda in 1925. He joined the RAAF in February 1943 and trained in Tiger Moths and Avro Ansons in Australia before heading for the UK. He proceeded to 21 Occupational Training Unit training in Wellington aircraft before converting to Lancaster Bombers. Fleming and his crew then joined 550 Squadron, based at North Killingholme, Lincolnshire.

After the war Edward returned to Australia to commence his medical career. He undertook further studies in the UK and in 1966, Edward and his family moved back to Australia and settled in Canberra, where he practiced as a general surgeon. He then joined the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Reserve as a senior surgical specialist, working at RAAF Fairbairn. 

“Resurrecting the Odd Bod campaign for a

 Memorial Plaque at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.”

Edward became a volunteer at the Australian War Memorial, assisting visitors to discover service records of relatives. It was in a discussion with then Director of the AWM, Dr. Brendan Nelson, that Edward asked for re-consideration of an Odd Bods request for a memorial plaque in the grounds of the memorial. The Odd Bods had been denied a plaque because technically they were not a military unit. 

Unveiling the Odd Bods plaque 14/3/2020 - L to R Bruce Waxman, Geoff Conacher, John Ireland, and Edward Fleming

Due in no small part to Edward’s efforts, a plaque now resides in a courtyard adjacent to the main memorial building in Canberra. The plaque acknowledges the service of Odd Bods like Edward who contributed so much to the allied effort in WW2.

Edward had a long and productive career and contributed to an important element of recognition for Odd Bods. Our thoughts and best wishes to his family at this time.

Funeral Details:

A funeral for Dr. Edward Fleming will be held at St. John the Baptist Church, Reid, ACT on Monday 13th December 2021 at 10am.

The service will be livestreamed at https://funeralstre.am/edward-fleming

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Bush Heritage ACT (https://secure.bushheritage.org.au/donate) or the Royal Flying Doctor Service (https://rfdsse.giveeasy.org/in-memory).

News From India On Odd Bods Raphael Students

The Odd Bods have a long history of supporting charity groups including Raphael, the Ryder Cheshire International Centre at Dehradun, the capital of the state of Uttarakhand in India's northern region. We are currently providing financial support for three students at Raphael.

The centre now has an instagram and facebook page. Links are below.

Latest News from Raphael: November 2021

"With the number of Covid-19 cases continuing to fall in India, there has also been an easing of restrictions. 

Unfortunately that means that people are getting more casual about observing protocols that are still in place.

At Raphael we continue to maintain as strict a protocol as possible; this includes temperature check at the gate, masks at all times and constant hand sanitizing. Some of the older students are now used to the masks, but for others it hangs around the chin somewhere! All eligible staff and residents have been fully vaccinated.

There are 82 residents in the hostels now and about 50 children attend the day school, the early intervention programmes or the school readiness programmes. Parents whose children are in residence have been anxious to send them back to school. The parents of the day scholars have been a little more reluctant, but they are trickling back now.

We are now on Instagram and Facebook, thanks to our PR Officer Sanghamitra Ghosh. We have 105 followers on Instagram and over 1000 ‘likes’ on Facebook!"

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raphaeldehradun/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/raphaelddn

Website: https://raphael-ryder-cheshire.org

Raphael provides  a range of disability and rehabilitation services to the disadvantaged and was set up by ex RAF Group Captain, Leonard Cheshire (Baron Cheshire VC, OM, DSO & Two Bars, DFC), and his wife, Sue Ryder (Margaret Susan Cheshire, Baroness Ryder of Warsaw and Baroness Cheshire, CMG, OBE).