Friends of Will Will Rook Pioneer Cemetery Inc. in Broadmeadows, Victoria, Australia | Community organisation

Friends of Will Will Rook Pioneer Cemetery Inc.

Locality: Broadmeadows, Victoria, Australia

Phone: +61 407 687 755

Address: 220 Camp Road 3047 Broadmeadows, VIC, Australia

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24.01.2022 These mausoleums look a lot smaller than those in Fawkner Cemetery

21.01.2022 First burial 10th December 1906, at Fawkner Memorial Park Victoria a 4 year old girl who died in August that year. Funeral director john Allison Brunswick. Buried in Roman Catholic section

16.01.2022 Anne Young Shared this in Saving Graves note the strange cloud formation

15.01.2022 Can’t read all that the paper says

13.01.2022 Anne Young Shared this on Saving Graves

08.01.2022 Anne Young Shared this in Saving Graves

05.01.2022 It was a great honour to be given family permission and permission from the Brisbane City Council to voluntarily restore the civilian granite headstone of Isabe...lle and Duncan David Sexton which includes a memorial inscription for their son, Bernard Manders Sexton. Bernard was a Prisoner of War during WW2 who sadly lost his life at sea. It was another hot day out at Lutwyche Cemetery where Cate, Paul and I were joined by Corporal Sam as well as our new volunteer, Katie. It is so rewarding to see this headstone transform from being unkempt to becoming a neat and tidy grave once again. BERNARD MANDERS SEXTON Gunner Bernard Manders SEXTON was born on 16th October 1915 in Auckland, New Zealand to parents Duncan David Sexton and Isabelle Hill. Bernard and his family immigrated to Australia and settled in Brisbane. Bernard enlisted in the Militia Forces on 07 November 1938 in Brisbane (Army No 401363) and was allotted to the 13th Field Battery,5th Field Brigade and was discharged the following year on 18 September 1939. On 03 July 1940, Bernard enlisted with the Australian Army at Kelvin Grove in Brisbane and was a Gunner in the 2/10 Field Regiment (SERN: QX13955). On 04 September 1944, Bernard along with 1,318 Prisoners of War (including 718 Australians), who were all survivors of the Burma-Thailand Railway, embarked from Singapore on board the Japanese transport Rakuyo Maru. The ship was part of a convoy of 13 ships which included other PoW ships. At 2am on the 12 September, the convoy was attacked near Haanan Island by the submarine US Growler and an escort ship was sunk. At 5.30am the convoy was again attacked, this time by submarine US Sealion who torpedoed a tanker, a freighter and the ship that Bernard was aboard the Rakuyo Maru. The Rakuyo Maru was hit in the front and in the engine room but did not sink. The PoW’s on board, jumped over the side into the sea while the Japanese on board evacuated, taking the ship’s life boats. At 6.15am, the convoy was again attacked and depth-bombs were exploded in the water near the Rakuyo Maru and the PoW’s floating nearby. At 7.10am some of the PoW’s who had jumped into the water returned to Rakuyo Maru which was still afloat. By 5.30pm, the ship was near sinking and all the PoW’s left the ship. It is estimated that nearly 1,160 POW’s died with the sinking of the Rakuyo Maru. Bernard Manders Sexton was one of the soldiers lost at sea on that day. His date of death is recorded as 12 September 1944. LEST WE FORGET The following links are for an interview with Roy Cornford who was a survivor of the sinking of the Rakuyo Maru. https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au//roy-cornford-sinking-rakuy https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au//roy-cornford-sinking-rakuy In Australia, always get permission from the cemetery management before doing any restorations as many cemeteries do not allow descendants to do restorations on a family member’s grave or headstone memorial without a permit. We have restored the lettering to many granite headstones over the past six years and we therefore have the confidence, skills and experience to undertake this voluntary work. We know our limits and we will never agree to do a headstone restoration unless we believe that we will get a perfect result. We always consider the safety factors before restoring a headstone. For example, some graves may look safe to walk on but in fact, the grave may have a very thin concrete layer above the original burial site. If there is no solid foundation below the concrete then the concrete may collapse if you stand on it. That is why we assess the safety first and organise wood planking over the grave site if necessary before we restore the headstone. We achieved this headstone restoration result today in one hour and the restoration cost us approximately $15 in materials. We do not use any chemicals to clean the granite headstone before restoring the lettering - just a drop of dishwashing detergent and water, plus a soft bristled nylon brush with a bit of elbow grease, and then we restore the lettering. Please don’t ever use household cleaning products such as bleach, exit mould or vinegar on a headstone (whether it is watered down or not) as it has a negative impact on the stone in the long term and will break down the stone faster. Any cleaner or biocide needs to be as close to pH neutral (7) as possible.

03.01.2022 Someone may be able to attend these meetings in these areS.