AFVOA Newsletters of Year 2012

Page 61 of 80 As one of the Founder Members of the AFVOA,I wish to thank the President and the Vice president for their very laudable gesture of honouring my wife Mrs Sarojini Kasturi Raj on her completing 80 years of age. More than that, they took time off and visited our house to do the honours by wrapping a lovely "PONNADAI" shawl around her. My wife is bed ridden and was elated as she never thought that some one from the Management Committee of our AFVOA would come to greet and honour her. She candidly remarked that, during her life in the Armed Forces, neither the Border Roads organization nor the CRPF, where in both of us had worked ceaselessly had thought of recognizing her contribution. As such this gesture from the AFVOA would be remembered by both of us. Mrs Sarojini, in her younger days, was a member of the Guild of Service and the Red Cross. She was an accomplished Bharat Natyam dancer and was selected to give a performance to entertain the wounded British soldiers from the Burma front, admitted in the MH Madras. After her marriage, she had done yeoman service for the tribals as a Red Cross worker in the Siang frontier division of NEFA, with the permission of the Political officer. In 1970, we had done some very valuable work for collection of Engineer Intelligence right up to Mymensingh, now in Bangladesh We thank the "core group volunteers" of the AFVOA who help us immensely in our hour of need and are a mere call away for any assistance that we need. Long live our spirit of camaraderie and friendship. Lt Col V Kasturi Raj - Bombay Sapper TRAVELOGUE Australian War Memorial Our son and d-i-l were our hosts and we spent a day in Canberra visiting the Australian War Memorial. The Memorial is housed in an impressive sandstone building, with its copper-sheathed dome. Selections of relics, official and private records, art, photographs, film, and sound are employed to relate the story of a young nation's experience in world wars, regional conflicts, and international peacekeeping. The story begins at the time sailing ships first brought European settlers, convicts, and military from England in 1789 and extends to the present. The Memorial's Aircraft Hall has a number of classic aircraft on permanent display, including a Mosquito, Kittyhawk, Mustang and Zero. One of the most exciting aspects of Aircraft Hall is the theatrical lighting used to focus attention on individual aircraft. Each object is highlighted to bring out its unique features, while the interior of the Hall is left in darkness. To enhance the effect, each object is elevated or suspended at a different height and perspective to show dramatically different views. A highlight is a wall-to-wall movie screen projection of rare film footage. The Hall of Valour honours those Australians who have received the Victoria Cross. Ninety-six Australians have won the Victoria Cross. Sixty Victoria Crosses are on