APPEALS

There are two main appeals which the Sub Branch is involved in:

ANZAC DAY

REMEMBRANCE DAY

Each of these appeals receives a significant return from generous members and the wider public. This does not happen without a comparably significant volunteer effort on the part of a large group of people who carry out many tasks under the leadership of the Appeals Officer and members of staff.

ANZAC Day involves the sale of ANZAC badges and related items which recall aspects of Australia's involvement in worldwide conflict. The items which are sold on Remembrance Day in November are based on the theme of poppies, recalling the many fields of those flowers familiar to soldiers who fought in WW1 on the 'Western Front', especially in the areas close to Belgium. These were the inspiration for the many references to fields of poppies in the region of Flanders – many poems, songs, dedications and other literary forms are based on those images. With the passage of time, there is no one left for whom those images are real recollections, other than for those who have visited the area during more recent years to pay their respects to those who fought and the many who died in those battles.

Each appeal involves many volunteers who sit at tables near the entrance to many shops in the local area in the two or three weeks prior to the actual date of each commemoration. 

As a result of the generosity of the local community, each year and leading up to both commemorations, the collections raise tens of thousands of dollars which are used locally for veterans' support activities, with a portion also being sent to the Victorian Branch of the RSL for use in supporting veterans' welfare in Statewide programs.