Australia Day – 26th January
Celebrated annually Australia Day commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788 and the proclamation at that time of British sovereignty over the eastern seaboard of New Holland.
The Leongatha community celebrates Australia Day with a morning service at McIndoe Park, followed by breakfast provided by the Leongatha RSL, the Lions Club and other community organisations.
ANZAC Day – 25th April
The Leongatha RSL remembers the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli the the Ottoman Empire during World War I by an annual march through the main street of Leongatha.
ANZAC day in Leongatha starts with a dawn service outside the Leongatha Memorial Hall following breakfast at the Leongatha RSL.
Staring at 11am outside the Leongatha RSL, Veterans, Members of the RSL and Members of the local community march up Smiths Street, Peart Street and then down to McCartin Street to commence a large rememberance service outside the Leongatha Memorial Hall. This is followed by a church service inside the hall.
After the church service a luncheon is held at the Leongatha RSL for special guests. The Bistro is also open for bookings.
Legacy Week – September
The Leongatha RSL supports Legacy Week by collecting donations to help raise awareness and funds for the families of our incapacitated and deceased veterans. Held the first week of September.
Remembrance Day (Armistice Day) – 11th November
Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day or Armistice Day) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth countries since the end of World War I to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. Rememberance Day is observed on the 11th of November to recall the end of hostilities of World War I on that date in 1918. Hostilities formally ended “at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month”, in accordance with the Armistice, signed by representatives Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning.
Armistice Day (which overlamps with Remembrance Day) commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiegne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o’clock in the morning – the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918.