Paying tribute to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice

Ballarat residents are invited to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the service of their country at the 2021 Remembrance Day service at the Sturt Street cenotaph. 

Remembrance Day – first held at the end of World War I by all Commonwealth nations – commemorates soldiers who have died in the line of duty with a minute’s silence on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. 

This year’s service will follow COVIDSafe practices, including attendees aged 16 and older required to be double vaccinated and to provide evidence when checking in using a QR code or via the Service Victoria app, Medicare App or a physical copy of their certificate. 

The service area will be fenced, but attendees are not required to have a ticket to enter. 

Road closures will also be in place between 7.45am and 1pm: 

• Sturt Street closed from Dawson Street to Raglan Street in both directions 
• Lyons Street South closed between Dana and Sturt streets, with access for local traffic only via Dana Street 
• Lyons Street North closed between Sturt and Mair streets, with access for local traffic only via Mair Street 
• Traffic detours will be in place along Dana and Mair streets, while pedestrians will still have access to Sturt Street between Dawson and Lyons streets. 

Other services will be held at:

• Buninyong : 10:40am wreath laying (Buninyong Cenotaph), 1pm  (Buninyong Cemetery Gate), 2pm (Cambrian Hill Avenue)
• Sebastopol – 10:30am (Sebastopol Cenotaph)
• Arch of Victory
• Prisoner of War

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said it was important to remember soldiers who died serving their country since World War I. 

“These men and women gave up their lives so we can live in peace today,” Cr Moloney said. 

“It is important we always remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and it is very important we remember – and carry on - their fighting spirit, particularly as we start to come out of the recent difficult times.” 

RSL Ballarat president Alan Douglass said Remembrance Day was a service to remember the ex-servicemen who answered the nation’s call and then made the ultimate sacrifice, including those from Ballarat who are commemorated in the nation’s longest living war memorial, the Avenue of Honour. 

“This left an enormous hole in Ballarat’s cultural, social and economic fabric,” Mr Douglass said. 

Mr Douglass said it was also a time to remember the 15 million animals, including horses, donkeys, pigeons and canaries, who had played a part in the war effort through carrying injured soldiers from the front, carrying messages and alerting the soldiers to poisonous gases. 

For more information about the Remembrance Day service contact the Ballarat RSL on 5332 3300.