John Head a podiatrist from Shepparton actively involved in SAM and STAG, spoke to the club. John has written several books and plays, and spoke on his play "Journey to Dookie"
Presented as a play at Dookie Hall in 2016 to a sell-out audience and as "Dookie the Musical" in 2018 at Westside Theatre, again to a sell-out audience.
Play about war, honoring the 16 men from Dookie who lost their lives in WWI.
John highlighted the details of several soldiers. William Blair a stock agent actively involved in the community died in 1917. John Henry Taylor migrated to Australia in 1913, enlisted in 1914, died in 1917.
John visited the graves of 14 in Belgium. Yres destroyed during the war, but since rebuilt has 54,900 names on the Menin Gates memorial, of which 6,000 were Australian.
AIF discipline was poorer than other dominion countries, desertion rates in 1918 British 1 in 1000, Canadians, New Zealand and South African 1 in 16 and Australia 1 in 9.
Indiscipline behind the lines compensated by excellent battle service.
John now serving on the Calder Woodburn Memorial Avenue committee. The avenue was a memorial to an Arcadian farmer who died aged 24. The Memorial is the longest eucalypt memorial avenue, spanning 20 km with over 2,400 native trees commemorating the names of 99 names of local servicemen who lost their lives in WWII.