Dambusters - The Last Storyteller

Following is a link to a BBC report on a fascinating documentary about this iconic WWII event.

http://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-42580442/dambuster-johnny-johnson-recalls-world-war-two-raid

Farewell Ron Fitch AM

Ron Fitch passed away on Saturday 27^th January 2018.

Ron was a past Vice-President of the Odd Bods and a regular attendee at Association functions. He is survived by his wife Lorna who maintained the Odd Bods birthday card register for many years.

Ron was a recipient of the Legion D’Honneur and a Member of the Order of Australia - In recognition of service to industrial relations, to commercial arbitration and to architecture.

Ron’s memoirs are published in a book “Recollections – A Lancaster Bomber Crew 55 Years On”.

Our sincere condolences to Lorna and family.

Funeral Arrangements:

Service Date: Saturday, 3 February 2018      

Service Time: 2:00 PM     

WD ROSE BRIGHTON CHAPEL

139 MARRIAGE ROAD, BRIGHTON, VIC

Ken Rechter Eulogy

Read the full eulogy of Ken Rechter by clicking here - Ken Rechter Eulogy

Passing Of Ken Rechter

Hathazari, Eastern Bengal, India. c. 21 February 1945. A home-made hammock supports 419410 Flight Sergeant A. K. Rechter, wireless air gunner of North Brighton, Vic, a RAAF member of No. 117 (Dakota) Squadron RAF in Burma.

Odd Bod, Alan Kenneth (Ken) Rechter, passed away in Colac on 8th January 2018 and will be remembered at a graveside service at Brighton Cemetery on Friday 12th January at 2:00pm.

Ken was known for his service to community and particularly a long association with Guide Dogs Victoria. Ken was a Wireless Air Gunner with 117 Squadron during WWII.

Recent News And Links - 10/1/2018

Ryder Cheshire - the November edition of the Raphael Newsletter can be found here - 
http://ryder-cheshire.org/migration/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Raphaels-Newsletter-November-2017.pdf

What Is On At The Shrine - details of events at Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance - http://www.shrine.org.au/Shrine/Files/9b/9b8a1500-711f-4c66-af35-cbe765fc2592.pdf

Plurals In The English Language

Friend, Bryan Wilcockson, sent us this gem. You may have seen it before but it is good enough to repeat. 

 The English Plural according to....

We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.
You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.

 

 

If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?
If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?

 

 

 

Then one may be that, and there would be those,
Yet hat in the plural would never be hose,
And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.
We speak of a brother and also of brethren,
But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!

 

 

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. 
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; 
Neither apple nor pine in pineapple. 
English muffins weren't invented in England .

 

 

 

 

We take English  for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,
We find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, 
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write, but fingers don't fing, 
Grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?

 

 Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend?

If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them,
What do you call it?

 

 If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? 

If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?

 

 

 Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English

Should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.
In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?

 

 We ship by truck but send cargo by ship...

We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park in a driveway and drive in a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
While a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

 

 You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language

In which your house can burn up as it burns down,
In which you fill in a form by filling it out,
And in which an alarm goes off by going on.

And in closing..........

 

If Father is Pop, how come Mother's not Mop.????

Happy New Year To All

This wonderful photo of a Mosquito backdropped by a magnificent cloud formation seemed appropriate as we wish all our Friends a Happy New Year for 2018.

Life And Times Of Walter Eacott 1922-2017

In June 2004 Walter was asked to prepare a brief chronology of his life for fellow Odd Bod and friend, Jack Elliott, who was giving a talk. What follows is taken from Walters notes and includes his terminology and impressions.

Walter Alexander Eacott

1.    Born 28 August 1922 at Chingford, an historic town on the outskirts of London, famed for its associations with Queen Boadicea who fought the Romans there; for Queen Elizabeth 1 who had a hunting lodge on the edge of Epping Forest (the lodge is still there); for Winston Churchill who was its MP between wars 1 and 2.

2.    Joined the Air Force Defence Cadet Corps, (forerunner to the ATC) in 1938 and became very air-minded. When he was 18 he volunteered for the RAF and joined in December 1940 to be trained as a pilot. He got his wings in December 1941, became a night fighter pilot after OTU and was posted to 219 Squadron on the English south coast near Chichester. Didn’t last long; El Alamein was in the offing and at short notice he was sent with a number of other expensively-trained night fighters to the Middle East (Egypt) where they were remustered to day fighters after several months of kicking their heels doing nothing!

Walter (middle) with a couple of pals.

3.    Walter was posted to 603 Squadron in December 1942, flying Beaufighters on Coastal Command convoy escorts, desert patrols, supporting the Sicilian and Italian invasions (all from the N. African desert) then on Greek Island “armed rovers” until 10 November 1943, just at the end of ops, when he was shot down in the Aegean Sea and became a PoW the next day, 11 Nov.

4.    Transferred to Germany, Walter was in Stalag IVB for 3 months before exchanging ID with an Irish soldier, in order to get out of the main camp into a working sub-camp in order to escape.

5.    Post-war, Walter joined London’s Metropolitan Police in 1950 (looking for excitement) and was promoted through the ranks to Inspector in 1960. He became disenchanted and, in 1967, was appointed to the RAAF as an Administrative Officer, came to Australia, and served until 1979, retiring as a Squadron Leader.

6.    He served in local government circles as Director of the Western Region Commission (a Gough Whitlam/Tom Uren invention) until final retirement in 1986.

7.    Walter became “Citizen of the Year” in Werribee 1992 for his service to the community.

8.    In 1993 he was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for services to youth and to the retired (Area Commissioner for Scouts, Probation Officer, Probus, Freemasonry, RAAF Association, U3A etc.)

9.    Walter joined the Odd Bods in 1983 and was elected President in 2001. “Still my favourite association!” wrote Walter in June 2004.

Our Tribute To Walter Eacott In Today's Press

Walter Eacott- Memorial Service

Farewell To Walter Eacott

Immediate Past President of the Odd Bods Association, Walter Eacott OAM, passed away suddenly on Thursday 30^th November 2017.

Walter A. Eacott 162637 PLT OAM 219,272,603. Goldfish – Med, 1943- POW.  Immediate Past President Odd Bods Association. Passed 30/11/2017.

Our thoughts are with the Eacott family and all Walter's friends.

From Facebook:
"Vale Walter. Your Company and jokes will be sorely missed." - Rosemaree Matta.
"So sad to hear XX" - Amanda Riley.

The Last EATS Luncheon

The Empire Air Training Scheme luncheons have been a feature of the Odd Bods calendar for many years as veterans meet to socialise and reminisce. Faye & Gerald McPherson have organised the luncheons in recent years and agree that last Monday's event would be the last as time takes its toll on those available to attend.
Faye was good enough to sent us this great photo of the attendees.

Weston Bate Memorial Service - On The Day

Friday's service at Leonda paid a great tribute to Weston Bate and his family. Around 400 people attended the service and were treated to a variety of heartfelt stories from friends and family members. There was music, poetry and plenty of photos on large screens.
 Weston spent a very busy life and tributes included reference to his school years, his sporting prowess, his war service, teaching years, book writing, and contribution to our understanding of Australian history.

One of Weston's poems was put to music and the stirring conclusion included audio of Weston reading part of his poem "The Summit".

Perhaps the highlight of this celebration were the very personal and funny stories told by his 6 children and even Janice was brave enough to step up to the microphone.

Odd Bods attendees included Walter Eacott, Doug Parry, Alan Couper, Gerald & Faye McPherson, Gary Elliot, Terry Maher, and Greg Smith. Best wishes were passed on to the family on behalf of all Odd Bods and the Friends Of The Odd Bods Association.

A formal letter of support was sent to Janice and family by  President, Bruce Waxman OAM RAAF (Rtd)

Weston Bate Memorial Service

Recent News And Links

Mosquito Aircraft Association - a link to their latest news bulletin including details of their AGM and 25th Birthday celebrations - https://1drv.ms/f/s!ApU6F7-h3l2kg70qMA-8_mA2i4PYaA

Ryder Cheshire News - http://ryder-cheshire.org/

Ryder Cheshire Christmas Cards are available for ordering - enquiries to Helen Newton at phnewton@ryder-cheshire.org

Berlins Flak Towers - a story about the giant flak towers constructed in Berlin during WW2 - http://quadrant.org.au/opinion/travel-qed/2017/11/inside-hitlers-dark-tower/

A tribute on ABC News to 78 Squadron veteran Michael Atkinson - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-29/air-force-tribute-to-lieutenant-michael-atkinson/8998580

Tributes For Weston Bate

Weston Bate was well known for a variety of reasons. He was of course a key member of the Odd Bods and his wisdom and wit contributed to many official and social gatherings. 

His role as an historian and author has been lauded in a number of tributes including this article in the Ballarat Courier - http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/5031719/ballarat-mourns-the-loss-of-prominent-historian-weston-bate/

Weston had his own wikipedia page and has been described as an academic giant particularly for his roles at Deakin University. In 1997 he was awarded the Order of Australia for his contribution to academia. He passed away on 31st October and will be sorely missed.

More Links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weston_Bate

https://melbournehistoryworkshop.com/2017/11/01/vale-weston-bate/

COMMENTS:
12/11/2017
To be told of the death of Weston Bate, OAM came as a shock to me. That learned, capable Professor of History was my Vice-President when I was President of the Odd Bods. Weston was a wonderful back-up when I was unable to attend functions, and he would take my place any time at short notice. He was a wonderful speaker, with a large amount of knowledge stored in his lively brain. He was trained as a pilot in the Empire Air Training Scheme (E.A.T.S.) that became an important part of Odd Bod activity.

Weston had a long and happy marriage with his lovely wife Janice, and I’m proud to have known them both.

Walter Eacott, OAM.

Farewell Weston Bate OAM

Weston Bate OAM passed away peacefully on Tuesday 31st October 2017. A Celebration of his life will be held later in November.

Our thoughts are with Janice, Chris and family.

Weston Arthur Bate - 430354  PLT  OAM  27 O.T.U. 1654 HCU  24 September 1924 - 31 October 2017

If you would like to leave some words about Weston please click on the "Comments" link below.

Passing The Baton With Birthday Cards

Lorna Fitch has done a remarkable job of keeping up an Odd Bods tradition of sending out birthday cards to wives and widows of Odd Bods. 

This process was started by Shirley Smith (wife of Odd Bods Founder George Smith) back in 1973 and then taken on by current Friends Of The Odd Bods member Jean Smith in 1994 before Lorna became involved in around 2012.

Lorna has now asked to pass the baton on to a younger generation and we are very pleased to advise that Anne Jones and Willa Whitewolf will be sharing the honour with Willa telling us that her sister Amy will also help out. Our photo shows Lorna and Anne during the handover.

During the handover we were able to view the collection of correspondence and record books that have accumulated over the years and from pages of the "Birthday Book" we thought these words written by Shirley Smith more than 25 years ago were worth recording.

Our thanks to Anne Jones and Willa Whitewolf for helping us to maintain the Odd Bods motto - "Pressing on.... remembering."

Battle Of Britain Commemorations Hobart

The 77^th anniversary of the Battle of Britain was celebrated at a ceremony in Hobart over the weekend and Friends of the Odd Bods Patron, AVM Peter Scully (Rtd) has been good enough to send us a report and photos.

Our B of B commemorations went very well his year;  DCAF AVM Gavin Turnbull, AM  was Guest of Honour and overall attendance was probably the best yet.

Events started with a ‘hails & welcome’ at the RAAF Memorial Centre which was bursting at the seams.   A long standing supporter Gordon Kennett, a past owner of Rosebank Engineering in Melbourne, provided $1000/- for ‘drinks for the boys & girls’ at this function.  Gordon has been a long standing supporter of RAAF Veterans and was closely involved with the ‘Save Point Cook’ campaign and the replica Box Kite project.  Indeed, if it were not for Gordon, the Box Kite would not have got off the ground.

A Memorial Service at St David’s Cathedral was held on Saturday afternoon, conducted by the Dean, the Very Rev. Richard Humphrey and the RAAF senior chaplain at Air Command, Group Captain the Rev Peter Friend.  The Cathedral was packed for the occasion.

Then followed a formal Dining-In Night at Luxbet Reception Centre which has looked after us for many years.  There were over 170 in attendance, including the Defence/Air Attaches from Canada, Germany, The Netherlands, Poland (all the way from Djarkarta where he resides), New Zealand, United Kingdom and the United States.  Also present was a Senior Vice-President of Rolls Royce, all the way from the UK.  She observed that:  this was the last place in the world where a traditional Air Force Dining -In was held.

The following morning a wreath laying service was held at the Hobart Cenotaph in bright sunny weather, attended by all & sundry including representatives from the Federal and State Governments and Oppositions.  A flypast of Hawks from No 79 squadron and a Harvard warbird coincided with the first wreath.  At the conclusion of the service which was conducted by GPCAPT Peter Friend  the Roulettes put on a splendid aerobatic display followed by a lone Harvard ‘Warbird’.  The address was given by the DCAF, AVM Gavin Turnbull, AM.

Following the Service there was a BBQ at the RAAFA which was again very well attended. All together a most successful weekend.

The final photo shows Peter with the Roulettes all in mess kit. Peter was an earlier member of the roulettes for three years and this occasion brought back fond memories. 

A Visit To Yorkshire Air Museum

One of our UK Correspondents, Bryan Wilcockson, has made another pilgrimage to the Yorkshire Air Museum, primarily to tend the Rowan tree dedicated to F/Lt Harvey Randell (Father of our Secretary, Peter Randell) and Harvey’s Pilot Ken Dean DFC.

Tending to the tree and the brass plaques usually includes a ceremonial drop or two, in this case Norwegian Firewater. Bryan has informed our readers in the past that he usually works on the ratio of “one for the tree and one for me.” We notice that the tree is bearing fruit in this photo so the fertilising seems to be working fine.

Bryan was good enough to send some photos from around the museum as well.