RESIDENTS in Glen Innes will join the nation in a minute's silence on November 11, to mark Remembrance Day.
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Glen Innes RSL sub-branch president Ken Michell said November 11 was a "time to stop and reflect on who served, and died, for humanity".
"We have a number of services in Glen Innes where people can do this," Mr Michell, who served between 1969-90, said.
A Remembrance Day service will be held in Anzac Park, Rocky Ponds Creek, at 10.25am, with the Last Post played at 11am.
Veterans, their families and guests are then invited to a light lunch at the Glen Innes and District Services Club, in Grey Street.
Mr Michell said smaller services would be held at Roseneath Aged Care Centre today, November 7, for those who were unable to attend the main service in Anzac Park.
(There was a similar service held at Glenwood Gardens Retirement Village yesterday.)
November 11 was initially known as Armistice Day.
It was on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month when the Germans called for an "armistice".
Armistice Day heralded the end of four years of The Great War, 1914-18, which claimed the lives of up to 13 million people worldwide and 61,512 Australians alone.
The name was re-evaluated at the end of World War II.
In Australia and Britain, "armistice" yielded to the word "remembrance".
November 11 then became a day to reflect and honour the lives of those lost while fighting in all wars and conflicts. Remembrance Day gained special attention in Australia in 1993, the 75th anniversary of the armistice.
That was when the remains of an unknown Australian soldier, exhumed from a military cemetery in France, were entombed in the Australian War Memorial's Hall of Memory.
Remembrance Day ceremonies were conducted simultaneously in towns and cities all over the country and re-established the day as one of significance.
In 1997, governor-general William Deane issued a proclamation formally declaring November 11 to be Remembrance Day.
He called for Australians to observe a minute's silence at 11 am on November 11, to remember those who died or suffered for Australia's cause in wars and conflicts.
(The practice of a minute's silence dates to 1919, when King George V called for two minutes' silence to mark the end of World War I.)
Wreaths of poppies are also laid at cenotaphs and war memorials on November 11.
The Last Post may be sounded at services in towns and cities across Australia.
Some people may place a sprig of rosemary in their lapel, as a replacement of the poppy.
Lest we forget.
