Tom honours grandfather

A World War I commemoration plaque has been re-instated in the Bacchus Marsh Avenue of Honour trees and Neerim South’s Tom Elton was part of the commemoration service for his grandfather.

Tom’s grandfather, Richard Coates, a baker, enlisted to serve in WWI when he was 30-years-old. A plaque commemorating his service was part of the Bacchus March Avenue of Trees, but had been missing for 40 years until it was returned to the Bacchus March RSL last year.

RSL secretary Bruce Lawton said he was pleased the historic plaque had been finally returned and not laying somewhere in grass or in some stranger’s shed.

Last week’s 100th anniversary of the Avenue of Honour commemoration ceremony was the perfect opportunity for the plaque to be reinstate the plaque in the RSL’s display cabinets and plant a new tree and plaque as part of the centennial celebrations.

The RSL searched for descendants of Richard Coates to be a part of the commemoration.

Tom said he was very proud to be a part of the ceremony which honoured his grandfather.

Richard Coates enlisted at Bacchus March in the 3rd Light Horse Brigade on September 16, 1914.

He joined the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force at Gallipoli in July 1915 and was wounded two months later. He arrived back in Melbourne in November that year and was discharged in September 1916.

He died in Colac, aged 77, in 1962.