Navy vet honoured with service medals in Mossman
ANZAC DAY
A local war veteran has been honoured for his service during a special ceremony in Mossman on Anzac Day.
Kubirri Aged Care Centre resident, Raymond Snow was conscripted in Sydney in 1972, where he served as a National Serviceman in the Australian Navy on HMAS Vengeance for six months during the Vietnam War.
Last year, Mr Snow contacted the Mossman RSL to see if they could help find his medals, 49 years after he served.
“He asked me to see if we could procure any medals from the Navy that he may have been awarded. I followed it up and found out that he had two medals out there,” said RSL Secretary Wally Gray.
Mr Snow was awarded the National Medal and the 100th Anniversary of the National Service Medal.
“It is terrific to give someone something that they have earned and deserved. He has done his time for the country and the country has shown him something back, that is what it boils down to,” Mr Gray said.
Adding to the occasion, Mr Snow’s granddaughter Amy Paterson, who is a Corporal in the Royal Australian Air Force at Amberley, Queensland, was on hand to surprise him by presenting his medals, along with her husband Luke who is a retired member of the armed forces.
“It went fantastically, Raymond was pleased to get them and was overly pleased that his granddaughter was there to present it, I don’t think it is something he will get over anytime soon,” Mr Gray said.