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 LAST
POST - VALE
During the past year we lost the following members and old
comrades – Colonel Frank Pearson,
Harry
Austen, Colonel Keith Howard, Laddie Romanowicz, Colonel Malcolm
Count, Lieutenant Colonel John
Neale, WO1 Bob Harris and Brigadier Terry Walker.
     
It is with regret that I have been informed of the passing of Harry Austen at
1PM today.
The funeral service will be held at Altona Memorial Park at 11AM this Friday the
9th October.
John Paterson (6 OCT)
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VALE
Colonel Francis
Charles Pearson, OAM, ED, EM (Retd)
23 August 1913 – 04 July 2009 |
A large crowd was in
attendance at the W.D. Rose and
Joseph Allison Funeral Home in
Cheltenham
on 13 July to celebrate
the long and bountiful life of
Colonel
Frank Pearson. Included in the crowd
were members of Frank’s
extended family, long time business
associates and employees and a large
contingent from the military
community.
During the course of his
life he had established himself as a
very successful businessman
particularly in
engineering, specialising in air
conditioning. He was also recognised as
an expert
breeder in the cattle
industry. Members of Frank’s family
recounted many stories of growing up in
the
Pearson family which
confirmed with those present that he had
a keen sense of humour.
Major General Greg Garde,
AO the principal speaker detailed his
long military career commencing
with his enlistment in
the 6th Field Company, Australian
Engineers on 29 January 1930 until
retirement in August
1964. In those pre war years,
Frank
served with 2nd Field Company,
Australian Engineers and
the 2nd Anti Aircraft Searchlight
Company where he was commissioned
on 14 October 1939.
Following service with the 53rd and 54th
Anti Aircraft Company, Frank
was seconded to the AIF
on 14 May 1941 and marched into the
newly formed 2/6th Australian
Armoured Regiment.
His immediate task
was involved in raising the sabre
squadrons and eventually command of HQ
Squadron. Promoted to
Temporary Major in June 1942, he served
with the unit on very intensive
active service in New
Guinea/Buna/Cape Endaiadere until April
1943. The unit returned to Australia
to Southport Queensland
to refit and retrain but never deployed
again and
Major
Pearson was
demobilised on 23 October 1945.
With the raising of the
Citizen Military Forces in 1948, Major
Frank Pearson was appointed
second in command of
8th/13th Victorian Mounted Rifles. On 01
January 1953 Frank was appointed
Commanding Officer
4th/19th Prince of Wales’s Light Horse
Regiment, a position he held until
December 1956. He then
continued to serve in senior staff
appointments until retirement in 1964.
Colonel Pearson remained
extremely active over the ensuing years,
supporting the 2/6th Armoured
Regiment Association and his beloved
4th/19th.
He was also a champion
of the old 4th Light Horse Regiment
Association and supported their
monthly dinners for over
30 years and later when they had all
gone, the widow’s Ladies Nights.
His other passion was
the 4th/19th Regimental Museum and
through many trials, tribulations and
unsatisfactory temporary
locations, he saw it firmly established
at Watsonia as the Regimental
History Room.
In early 1991 the
4th/19th Prince of Wales’s Light Horse
Regiment Association was formed and
naturally Frank was
appointed as Patron,
a
position he held till his passing.
The publication of the
unit history Hooves,
Wheels
and Tracks by David Holloway would
never
have eventuated without
his physical and moral support. He was
belatedly recognised with a Medal
of the Order of
Australia in the
2005
Queens Birthday Honours List.
The eulogies were
delivered by Major General Greg Garde,
AO and
Colonel
Brian Glendinnen,
OAM, ED RL.
John
Baker read the lesson and recited
the Ode to the Fallen.
Principal mourners from
4th/19th Prince of Wales’s Light Horse
Regiment were Commanding Officer
Lieutenant Colonel
Edward Luisetto and Second in
Command
Major
Tony Geyer. Musician
John
Mansfield provided
his usual outstanding support with the
playing of The Last Post and Rouse.
Other former Commanding
Officers in attendance were
Brigadier Angus McNeilage, Lieutenant
Colonel John Williams,
Lieutenant Colonel Chris Grigsby and
Lieutenant Colonel Graeme Smith.
Bringing up the rear
were Daryl Pinner, Tom James, John
Paterson, Dr. David Holloway, Rod
Westgarth, Roy Arnott, Tom Murphy,
Stan Rydell, John Hopkins, Graham
Wright, Graeme Perkins, Ron Lavars,
Stuart McDiarmid,
Clarrie Rule, Harry Austen and Peter
Martin.
Colonel Frank Pearson
served his country for more than 70
years; although not tall in stature,
his
effort, commitment and
dedication was immense.
Daryl Pinner, OAM
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It is with deep regret that the Association advises the passing of Colonel
Leslie G. Coleman who died
on 22 November 2008.
Colonel Coleman enjoyed a long career in the Australian Army beginning with his
graduation from
RMC Duntroon in December 1938. When the 1st Australian Armoured Division was
formed in 1942,
the then Captain Coleman was posted as the Adjutant of 2/10th Armoured Regiment.
Later after
extensive service across Australia, he was chosen to go to Britain where he was
attached to various
armoured units participating in Operation Overlord, the allied invasion of
Europe on 6 June 1944. By
the end of the year Les was serving with the Guards Armoured Division then
equipped with Churchill
tanks, as they crossed the Rhine river into Germany.
Following his service in Europe, Les was posted back to Australia as OC A
Squadron, 1st Armoured
Regiment (AIF) which landed on Balikpapan in July 1945 in support of Operation
Oboe 2. Following
his resignation from the Regular Army, Les enlisted in the Citizen Military
Force in 1960 and was
appointed CO of 4th/19th Prince of Wales’s Light Horse Regiment, an appointment
he held until 1962.
Upon retirement he was granted the honorary rank of Colonel.
one legendary story about Les and a certain Lieutenant John young (later sir
John young, AC,
KCMG, QC) concerned a US Army Jeep that was ‘loaned’ to the duo whilst
undertaking liaison duties
with US forces. Transfer of the jeep was administratively difficult and when it
‘disappeared’, Captain
Coleman took the heat for the young Lieutenant. sir John’s death was notified on
10 October 2008
and details of his life are included below. Many years later, both men became
involved with 4th/19th
PWLH, Les as the Commanding Officer and sir John as the Honorary Colonel.
The association also sincerely regrets the passing of Sir John Young, AC,
KCMG, QC former Chief
Justice and Lieutenant Governor of Victoria.
Sir John’s army service began when he was studying at Oxford university and
Britain declared
war on Nazi Germany. Sir John was commissioned into the Scots Guards, at that
time an infantry unit
that later converted to armour. So began Sir John’s service in the Corps. As a
member of 6th Guards
Armoured Brigade, he saw service from Normandy to Belgium and then onto the
German Plains.
Upon his return to Australia, he was admitted to the Bar, finally being
appointed Chief Justice of
the supreme Court and Victoria’s Lieutenant Governor in 1974. That year he was
also appointed
Honorary Colonel of 4th/19th PWLH, a position he held for many years.
a memorial service for the life of Sir John was held in St Paul’s Cathedral,
Melbourne and was
well attended by many members of the legal and military professions.
The RAACA sends its sincere condolences to the families of these two highly
respected old soldiers.
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Former 3155744 Sergeant Lance Harry (Tex) Hibberd
10 September 1946 – 9 August 2008
Tex Hibberd was the son of the late Lt Col Harry Hibberd,
Commanding Officer of 8th/13th Light
Horse Regiment (VMR) 1955-59. Lt Col Hibberd was an original
member of the association from 1946
and was a great supporter of the Victorian branch in its
formative years. Between father and son they
contributed some 60 years service together.
Tex was a long serving member of the Citizen Military Force
originally serving with 33 Company
RAASC at the South Melbourne Transport depot. He later
transferred to 4th/19th PWLH where he
served with the Transport Troop eventually qualifying as a B
vehicle instructor and Trade Testing
Officer. Tex also cross trained as an A vehicle crewman and
served with the units B Squadron.
In his final years of service, Tex paraded with the 3rd Training
Group at Puckapunyal in OR Training
Wing where he instructed on Brigade training courses.
After retiring from the Army Reserve, Tex moved to Kyneton where
he started his own security
business. This move to country Victoria saw an end to Tex’s
active participation in the RAACA where
he had been a committeeman for some years and Treasurer from 1977-81.
At his funeral service at St Paul’s Anglican Church Kyneton on
Tuesday 19 August, it was obvious by
the size of the crowd that he was a popular and respected member
of the local community. Both the
Carlsruhe CFA Brigade and the Kyneton RSL were well represented
and accompanied by Victorian
Branch members Daryl Pinner, Dr. David Holloway, John Hopkins,
Stan Rydel, Roy Arnott, Tom
Murphy, Jim DeFrancesco, Terry O’Connell, Greg Sheppard and CO
4/19 PWLH Lt Col Mick
Chadwick and RSM WO1 Brad Dunn formed a Guard of Honour after
the service. Musician John
Mansfield played his traditional haunting rendition of the Last
Post. Also present were past members
John Underwood and local ex Black Hat – Bob Ambrose.
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