Final recognition

By Kath Gannaway
IT HAS taken 65 years for the spirits of Vincent Peters and his wife Daisy to be reunited in Healesville.
Vincent, one of thousands of indigenous Australians who fought in WWII, died as a prisoner of war in Burma, leaving behind a wife and young family.
On Sunday 30 August the Peters family gathered at Daisy’s graveside at Healesville Cemetery to unveil a headstone in memory of the couple and recognising Vincent’s ultimate sacrifice for his country.
“Dad was buried in Burma and mum never had a headstone,” said Dot Peters who has been instrumental in having the role of indigenous servicemen recognised.
“The plaque has their names and a photo. It doesn’t bring dad’s body back,” she said, “but it brings his spirit and his name back to Healesville.”
The service was also attended by Vincent and Daisy’s children Eric Peters and Beryl Ayres and their families and the children of two other brothers, now deceased, Glen and Harry. Another brother, Jala, died young.
Dot Peters said she was only nine when she last saw her father who fought in the Middle East before returning to the Pacific where he was reported missing in 1942.
Harry also enlisted, at 16, but said he was 18 years old.
The headstone was organised through Honouring Indigenous War Graves, a Western Australian organisation founded by John Schnaars to recognise the services and sacrifices of indigenous veterans.
HIWG obtained funding for two Victorian graves and one in South Australia through the Federal Government’s Office of Heritage and Culture and Mr Schnaars read a message from Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at the service. The service was also attended by McEwen MP Fran Bailey, Seymour MP Ben Hardman and the Shadow Minister for Veteran’s Affairs, Louise Markus MP.
Dot Peters’s son Andrew spoke on behalf of the family, saying how proud and happy they all were to be together for such an important commemoration.
“For as long as I can remember, it’s the one thing mum always wanted as far as family is concerned, to recognise her father and bring the spirit of her mother and father back together,” he said.
“This is not just a Peters family thing,” he said. “It is part of Australia’s history.
“Vincent Peters died defending his country and we are grateful we now have something to finally acknowledge that.”