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Burleigh
Heads RSL Sub Branch President, Mr Chris Keating, said that
this occasion would be a very special one for the members of
Burleigh Heads RSL Sub-Branch as not too many years ago the
Sub-Branch was in threat of closure due to a lack of interest
from the ex-service community. The lights of the larger RSLs
clubs and RSL Sub-Branches, which were linked with even larger
RSL clubs, dazzled many ex-service men and women into joining
them. However, over the years, these same ex-service men and
women found those organizations to be rather impersonal. In
recent years, many ex-service personnel have gone back to look
for the traditional RSL of years gone by, one that focused on
and fostered mateship and camaraderie. This has certainly been
the case at the Burleigh Heads RSL Sub-Branch. Membership at
Burleigh Heads RSL was in the low 20's in the early 1990's and
gradually rose to a peak of almost 250, two years ago. The membership
numbers 230 today.
Burleigh Heads RSL
Sub-Branch was formed on the 3rd January,1939 - some 23 years
after the main body of the RSL organization was formed. The
formation almost 25 years after the original landings at Gallipoli
was a courageous one considering the dark war clouds forming
over Europe at that time and the fact that Burleigh Heads was
primarily a summer holiday destination area then. The Sub-Branch
has remained a strong voice for the ex-service community of
Burleigh Heads area for its 70 years and continues to represent
and serve its current 230 members just as energetically today.
Committee and Members
of the Burleigh Heads RSL Sub-Branch have been custodians of
the local ANZAC Day Commemorative Services since at least 1939.
However, there is evidence that services were conducted in Burleigh
Heads as early as 1920, most likely with the support of some
of the same veteran community. The Sub-Branch has for many years,
also been involved in the promotion of the observance of Remembrance
Day through its conducting of the Remembrance Day Commemorative
Services on November 11 each year. The regular conducting of
these commemorative services has resulted in a significant and
steady gain in momentum and substantial and growing number of
attendees each year. Additionally, the sub-branch also supports
the local indigenous people by working with the Kombumerri Aboriginal
Corporation to assist in the conducting of the annual Remembrance
of Indigenous Service personnel at the Yugambeh War Memorial
at the Jebbribillum Bora Ring adjacent to the RSL hall.
The Burleigh Heads
RSL Sub Branch has for a long time now also played a significant
community role in that it has offered its meeting hall, built
by sub-branch members in the 1950s, as a general community hall;
something that it continues to do today. The Burleigh Heads
RSL Sub-Branch Hall is made available to small community groups
for many activities at very reasonable rates. Without this facility
and offering, many groups in the Burleigh Heads community would
not have the funds to operate. The Committee and members feel
that the contribution of the RSL hall to the community is indeed
very valuable and, in fact, a necessary one. They are proud
to be able to contribute to the community in this manner.
The Returned Services
League was formed in 1916 at a conference of Returned Soldiers'
Associations. It was known then as the Returned Sailors and
Soldiers Imperial League of Australia (RSSILA). Its charter
was to address the growing welfare needs of diggers returning
from World War I.
Today, the RSL remains
a strong voice for the Australian Defence Force community and
provides vital welfare and advocacy services for returned and
current serving members.
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