Add Category
John Curdie OAM became president of the Epping sub-branch of the Returned Services League when his granddaughter Brittany Evans was two years old.
“Whenever we had a street parade or a function, ever since she was a tiny tot, she was very keen to be marching with me,” Curdie said.
For Evans, 24, attending the marches with her grandfather, now 85, are among her earliest memories.
RAAF Veteran John Curdie with his granddaughter, Private Brittany Evans.Credit:James Alcock
“Papa would always let myself and my siblings be involved with the march and the veterans, and it was nice to get so excited about it,” she said. “I’d worry that I was doing the right marching technique and all that sort of stuff.”
As an adult, Evans has maintained the tradition of attending the local Anzac Day dawn service in Epping with Curdie, along with other members of her family including her mother, partner and sister.
But this year will be special because, for the first time, both grandfather and granddaughter will both be in uniform. On Monday morning Evans will be there not as a private citizen but as Private Brittany Evans.
“She always comes to the dawn service with me and this year it will be as a fully trained member of the Australian Defence Force. I’m rather proud of that one,” Curdie said.
Evans went to university and started a career in marketing but quit last year to join the Australian Army. She told her grandfather she had applied at the breakfast after the Dawn Service last year.
Both John Curdie and his granddaughter, Private Brittany Evans, believe there is growing appreciation for the significance of Anzac Day among the younger generations.Credit:James Alcock