By Mikayla van Loon
With the Battle for Australia day commemoration at the Shrine of Remembrance on Wednesday 7 September, Lilydale High School student and Year 10 captain Olivia Bradshaw was honoured to have the opportunity to speak about a particular soldier’s plight.
As one of four students from different schools to participate by reading the story of someone who fought to protect Australia’s borders, the 16-year-old spoke about a soldier who fought in the Kokoda campaign in July 1942.
“It’s difficult as a teenager in this day and age, to imagine what a young man of the 1940’s would have felt and experienced while fighting for his country on foreign grounds,” Olivia said.
Admitting that as a young person of this era the biggest concerns she has are doing homework and “what my next Instagram post will be”, so stepping into the shoes of someone else was gratifying.
“I was honoured to represent Lilydale High School and to be able to share this story with other young people like myself. The ceremony commemorated the heroism and sacrifice of all the Australian and Allied forces who fought in the Pacific.
“It was a great opportunity to educate the youth of Melbourne, of those who came before us so that we will never forget the service of those brave men and women.”
