ANZAC Day 2011

A forecast of rain did not deter the more than 2000 people who attended the Anzac Day dawn service at Dunedin's Queens Gardens this morning.

Alan Pantall doesn't go to Anzac Day services.

Olivia Mason (13) was one of about 100 volunteers who helped make more than 4000 posies at the United Services Club in ST Kilda yesterday.

Doreen Dunckley (87) will complete a remarkable record when she plays the piano for the 40th and probably final time at an RSA commemoration service in Waikouaiti today.

Omakau and Poolburn schoolchildren are helping "breathe life" into the names on the district's war memorial boards.

Thousands of people turned out in Otago yesterday, attending services and parades to honour those who served in New Zealand's armed forces.

If an army marches on its stomach, then Wanaka caterers Crissy and Mark Langford know exactly how to support their troops.

This Anzac day was extra special for two Otago boys.

Under the cover of darkness and throughout the morning they arrived at war memorials throughout New Zealand to honour those who served their country.

The Otago Settlers Museum will be open after the Anzac Day dawn parade, at Queens Gardens, for visitors to inspect a roll of honour.

Even in the Western individualistic societies of today most of us still yearn for community and togetherness. We need to belong to family, locality and nation.

An Otago soldier in East Timor says he is looking forward to coming home after five eye-opening months on duty in the politically unsettled country.

When Theo Gray arrived at Torokina Airfield in Bougainville, ready to serve his country near the end of World War 2, he had a sense of anticipation - and just a little bit of confusion about the large number of empty tin cans lying about the campsite.