Memorial bench installed in Launceston
Just before Anzac Day, Launceston Legacy installed a commemorative bench next to the town’s Cenotaph.
It was the brainchild of Sonya Byrne, a volunteer with Legacy, who also designed the bench. Created by Plasma Art in Adelaide, the emblems of the three services and the words ‘Lest we forget’ are carved into the metal. When the sun is at the right angle, these symbols and words are cast in relief shadow on the grass.
The bench was funded with a Teddy Sheean VC Memorial Grant provided by the Tasmanian Government.
Sonya opted for a bench simply because there’s very little seating at the Cenotaph.
Sonya’s husband Terry is the president of Launceston Legacy, which he told the The Examiner, ‘provides emotional and financial welfare support to the widows, children and families of deceased and returned ex-service personnel’.
DVA has funded a second commemorative seat, which will be installed outside Launceston’s Legacy House. ‘The main focus of this bench seat will be the impression of a war-widowed mother and her two children inscribed on the metalwork on the back support of the seat,’ says Sonya.
