John began by telling us about one of his favourite pursuits: finding collectibles.  

He recently found a gem at an exhibition in Nannup - the program for Annual Charity Football Carnival organised by the Bunbury Branch of Legacy, in 1966.  This is what it said on the inside cover:

Legacy asks you never to forget that men served and died to preserve our security, and to preserve our peaceful way of life in this State of Western Australia. For the children of these men who gave their all, time has done much to soften the blow, but the need still exists for all the friendship, guidance and advice that the great Legacy Movement tries to offer them. When you think of Legacy, think with gratitude of the men who died – think with affection of their children. With your understanding and encouragement the selfless work of Legacy will continue until the youngest of these children has gained the Security in life to which all children are justly entitled.

For John, the reason for Legacy’s existence continues, albeit that the language has evolved to be more contemporary. Legacy now talks about “beneficiaries” instead of “widows” and “wards”, and the role has broadened to include beneficiaries of damaged veterans who have been involved in operational service.

In 1966, some 21 years after the end of the Second World War, the need for Legacy’s services was growing. In Western Australia, there were 3,400 children and 1,950 widows being directly supported by Legacy and, at the time, those numbers were forecast to increase. In contrast, today Legacy supports only 119 children and 2120 widows. Within these numbers, there are 63 families and 54 beneficiaries who have a disability. Of the 2120 widows, 620 are aged between 80 and 100; and 200 are aged 100 years and over.

John reminded us that since the Second World War, Australian forces have been deployed to warlike service in Malaysia, Korea, Vietnam, two Gulf Wars; Timor Leste (even though this was a humanitarian and security operation); and Afghanistan. As in 1966, the numbers of beneficiaries supported by Legacy is currently forecast to grow.

Legacy has been operating in WA since 1928.

According to John, the origin of Legacy reflects the true Australian character. Legacy grew out of the ashes of the First World War. In the trenches of the Western Front during World War I, a soldier said to his dying mate “I’ll look after the missus and kids”. This became known as The Promise – and it is still kept today.

Some 60,000 Australian service personnel were killed in the First World War and more than 150,000 were wounded, many dying soon after. Realising the dire circumstances of the tens of thousands of veterans, widows and children left behind, those who returned set out to help them. In 1923, Major General Sir John Gellibrand formed the Remembrance Club in Hobart. Another returning soldier, Colonel Stanley Savage, was inspired to establish a similar club in Melbourne which was named Legacy. 

Originally, it was returned servicemen who took this duty of caring for and supporting widows and children. They later became known as Legatees. To this day, it is the “army” of Legatees who volunteer the support that Legacy provides to its beneficiaries; and not all Legatees have had military service. In fact, many Legatees are or have been beneficiaries themselves, and seek to give back to Legacy the support they received as children.

John is a Legatee, and he supports seven beneficiaries. He introduced five of them to us, to give us an insight into the valuable role that Legacy quietly plays in the community.

The first beneficiary was Jan, whose husband was a Leading Seaman Marine Technician (otherwise known as a Stoker) who had warlike service in the Vietnam conflict. Jan’s husband passed away with cancer soon after diagnosis and one task that they were unable to complete before his death was to request his medals from the Department of Defence in Canberra. Jan found this task too confronting and reached out to Legacy for help. As Jan lives in Rockingham the case was allocated to John. After four months of negotiation with various agencies within the Department of Defence, John was able to arrange for the medals to be delivered directly to him which he then presented to Jan and her family. 

John's wife, Shelagh, is also a Legacy volunteer, and they have visited Jan in her home. It’s Shelagh’s covert role to assess whether Jan is able to sustain herself satisfactorily in her home, and there is food in the cupboard etc. In this case, Jan is financially secure and there are no problems there. John touches base with Jan every three months to make sure that she is able to manage her health issues, and she continues to be socially connected.

The second beneficiary was initially referred to John by an ex-Navy colleague. Fiona’s husband served in the Vietnam conflict and passed away from brain cancer some 15 years ago. She also has a diagnosis of cancer and, upon visiting her home with Shelagh, it was evident that she was experiencing financial pressure. On investigation, John found that Fiona’s husband had not reached out to the Department of Veteran’s Affairs after his diagnosis and so did not have a Veteran’s Gold Card. Although there was some doubt that an application for a War Widow’s Pension would be successful, as historically it has been difficult to establish with DVA the link between brain cancer and war service, John thought that an application should be submitted…. and was pleased to tell us that not only does Fiona now receive a War Widow’s Pension, she has also been provided with a Gold Card for her personal use. Fiona, now in remission from cancer, is a different woman. The financial pressure that she lived with has now been abated and she is much happier and has a more positive outlook on life. John and Shelagh catch up over coffee about every three months or so.

The story of the third beneficiary is quite different, and perhaps is a segue into the challenges and complexities that Legacy will increasingly face in the 21^st century. She is in her thirties, has two children in primary school, and lives in a regional community in the Southwest. The mother and two children have been enrolled with Legacy as beneficiaries of an ill-health veteran. Her husband, who cannot work, served in the Army in Afghanistan, and experiences significant mental health issues not only as a result of his Army service, but also as a result of occasional contact from lawyers for the Commonwealth seeking information and testimony for their case in connection with Ben Roberts-Smith.

The fourth beneficiary is interesting from the point of view of being a blended family. Her Navy husband, who had previous operational service in the Gulf War, passed away from a diving accident. He had three children from a previous marriage. Upon his death, the three children returned to live with their biological mother. The beneficiary reached out to Legacy out of concern for the youngest child who was having difficulty with her grades at school. Legacy responded to this scenario by funding a tutor to assist the child to improve her Maths grades. Interestingly, Legacy enrolled the veteran’s second wife, as she was married to the veteran at this time of his death, and the three children as dependants of the deceased veteran, but not the veteran’s first wife – the mother of the three children.

John said his last example happens all too frequently…. a colleague of his who served in Vietnam, was diagnosed earlier this year with Stage 3 lung cancer. His wife was a leader in the Arts community in Oakford. This, of course, sent their family into a tail-spin and another colleague of John's requested that he meet with them to discuss support for the wife under the criterion “dependent of an ill-health veteran”. John enrolled the veteran’s wife immediately as a Legacy beneficiary and, in the process, learned that the veteran did not have a current Will, and that the veteran paid all of the overheads for the family from a bank account that was in his name only. 

Legacy funds the writing of a Will in these circumstances, however, unfortunately, the veteran passed away before a Will could be created. So far, Legacy has provided support to the beneficiary in completing the various forms that are required by DVA in order to assess the beneficiary for a War Widow’s Pension and receipt of a Gold Card. John is the appointed Legatee for the beneficiary and plans to maintain regular contact – perhaps monthly – while she goes through the grieving process and establishes her life as a single woman.

So what are the challenges faced by, Legacy in the 21^st century. While a focus of Legacy in the future will be to continue the support of the 800-odd elderly widows, John told us there is a new generation of beneficiaries emerging. These beneficiaries will come from homes where the veteran is experiencing mental heath issues, including domestic violence. An increasing number of cases will involve both partners with operational service, so Legacy will provide support to both Mum, Dad and the kids. There are over 300 incarcerated veterans in WA, whose families may also need support. This matter is under current discussion with the State Government.

There are currently more than 70 registered ex-service organisations operating in Australia, and more than 1500 advocacy groups. Almost all of these have a focus on supporting the veteran – everything from assistance with transitioning from the Service; provision of financial advice; mental health services; employment and training services; and assistance with setting up veteran-run businesses. Legacy is the only charitable ex-service organisation that has a focus on supporting veteran families.

In summary, Legacy has a proud tradition, borne out of a promise made to a dying soldier in the trenches of the First World War. It is largely a volunteer organisation, with the “heavy lifting” being done by an army of Legatees, who go about their quiet business of providing support to an increasing number of beneficiaries whose circumstances are evolving and becoming more complex. It’s an organisation worth supporting.

John finished by thanking those present for listening to the Legacy story which he said, like Rotary, is a story of valued service to the community.

Lest We Forget