Cairns veteran pays his respects for Remembrance Day

Bolton Clarke Farnorha aged care resident and veteran Noel will mark Remembrance Day on 11 November reflecting on a 20-year naval career that took him to Vietnam and across Australia.

“I was living in Adelaide when I was 20 and joined the Navy on 2 July 1962 as a sailor,” Noel said.

“I worked my way through the lower deck until I got to be a Chief Petty Officer and ended up as a Lieutenant Commander.

“I was on various ships – HMAS Yarra, HMAS Hobart, HMAS Vampire, HMAS Sydney and HMAS Melbourne.”

Noel’s early years of service took him to Vietnam in 1967, 1971 and 1972, with each visit starkly different.

“For the first trip in 1967, I was young and when you’re young it’s different – you don’t take anything in.

“When I went back in ’71 and ’72, I was a Chief Petty Officer, so it all became a bit more real.

“I was on the HMAS Sydney, which was a converted aircraft carrier, and we would take the troops up and bring them back.”

After returning from third Vietnam journey, Noel was commissioned as a Supply Officer and led an audit team which saw him travel around Australia setting up Supply Operations Assistance Program (SOAP) teams within the service.

“I had been here in Cairns a few times during my travels with the Navy and that’s how I ended up here.

“When I resigned from the Navy, I decided to come back here with my wife and daughter because I liked it so much.”

For Noel, some of his most cherished moments from his career are from his time in the Navy.

“I loved being in the Navy and the higher up I worked, the more satisfying the job became to me.

“Remembrance Day is for the history at the very least and for people to know what we went through, the history of the country and what has happened.”

Bolton Clarke Farnorha aged care veterans will spend time as the day approaches exploring local historical wartime sites and museums including the Cairns Armoured Vehicle & Artillery Museum, HMAS Cairns Base, and a catamaran tour for ex-servicepeople.