Random thoughts and observations
I received an email in Afrikaans during the week asking if I had any information about the death by hanging of Cornelius Johannes Claassen at Somerset East, South Africa, on July 24, 1901.
I have posted my wife Juliet’s Claassen family tree on my website, and although Cornelius is not listed, he is presumed to be related.
A cousin of Juliet, genealogist Johann Claassen, replied to an email I sent him:
I’ve heard the audio clip several times in which then Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies found it his “melancholy duty” in 1939 to declare war on Germany. It was a memorable speech, perhaps the one for which Menzies is best known, along with his adulation of the Queen (I did but see her passing by).
With Remembrance Day coming up on Wednesday I bought a red poppy from a Legacy chap at the post office on Friday. In fact, I gave the man $5 and he handed over four poppies, so I gave two of them to Jim and Maggie. I always get a little reflective and melancholy around Remembrance [...]
The picture shows my uncle John Gorey in naval uniform, wearing a cap of HMAS Shropshire. I knew Uncle John had served in the navy, including in the Korean War, but I didn’t know about the ships. The internet is good for researching things like that. John died in 1997 and I only ever met [...]
Trooper Mark Donaldson, 29, from Newcastle, has been awarded Australia’s first Victoria Cross since the Vietnam War. He was presented with the country’s highest military honor for his rescue of a wounded Afghan interpreter from heavy fire in Afghanistan in September. Congratulations to Trooper Donaldson, pictured above with his wife.
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