No matter how the Coronavirus impacts ANZAC Day, the core heritage and values that connect Vasey Communities with our military forces, resonate ever deeper.
David “Dick” Payten was a veteran of the Kokoda Track, and one of the last surviving veterans of the 1942 Kokoda campaign, where he was an Artilleryman in the 11th Battery of the 2/6th Field Regiment of the 7th Division. Fondly known as “The Kokoda Poet”, Dick and his 11th Battery hauled two ‘25 pounder’ artillery guns up the Owen Stanley track and helped successfully defend against invading Japanese forces.
Watch Dick recite the poems, “The Gift Of Years” and “Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels” in the video below.