mp24957 Chaplain Mag Summer 2005 new.p65 - Chaplains service

DELVILLE WOOD AND SS MENDI MEMORIAL SERVICES
The Chaplain General, as part of a group of senior SANDF officials (lead by CJ Ops Lt Gen Binda) and local Military Attaches, conducted three
memorial services during July 2005 in France and England to honour our fallen soldiers who died during the First and Second World Wars.
Wreaths were also laid at all sites by the senior SANDF and other personnel.
• Delville Wood. This beautiful memorial commemorates the almost
three thousand SA soldiers who lost their lives in safeguarding the
town of Longuavale during World War 1 (WW1). That site was
bought by the SA government and after it was replanted with
Delville Wood graves of about 3 000 SA Soldiers
beautiful trees, both a memorial and museum were erected.
Ambassadors, Military Attaches and the local townsfolk
participated in the annual memorial service.
• Dieppe. This harbour city was used during WW1 as the harbour
for our forces as well as the site that hosted the military hospital.
Almost 600 of our soldiers from the then “Native and Coloured
Corps” were buried there. A very touching ceremony was held
Chaplain Gen conducting devotions at Dieppe
with a special moment when the names of some of the individuals
that lied buried there were read out loud.
30 SANDF - The Military Chaplain
• SS MENDI. At a memorial site in Southampton are engraved the
names of 682 of our soldiers who died at sea on board of the SS
Mendi when it was rammed of the coast of England. Most of
these soldiers were of the then “Native and Coloured Corps”.
2005 SANDF Delegation at SS MENDI memorial site, Southampton
They were on their way to France to join the deployed South African
forces. The memorial service was held under a big tree whilst it
was raining lightly.
We as soldiers do have the moral obligation to honour the fallen.
Therefore it is off utmost importance to ensure a similar memorial
somewhere on the continent of Africa to honour all our soldiers that
died in uniform on this continent.
It was good to see the professional way the Commonwealth war graves
Commission upkeep the graves and memorials of our soldiers. All
these sites are worth a visit.
YOUNG CHAPLAINS’
CONFERENCE!
A conference entitled ‘Young Chaplains’ Conference’ took place
in Denmark during the first week of September. Chaplains L.E.
Ngesi and M. Smit attended on behalf of SANDF chaplains.
They shared insights on the role of the chaplain in the military,
especially out of the African context.