URGENTLY NEEDED

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 6, Issue 6, 18 September 1942, Page 5

URGENTLY NEEDED

WELCOME HOME ORGANISATION

WORKS FALLS ON FEW

The question of establishing an official 'Welcome Home' organisation, in Whakatane, or else to embody that duity in the operations of the existing Soldiers Farewell Committee, was discussed at a meeting of the latter organisation last Wednesday evening. It was suggested that in the past the committee had been somewhat lax in this respect, leaving the matter of welcoming returning men in the hands of a willing lew. The attitude in Whakatane was compared critically with what was being done in the country centres where every man was met and entertained. A suggestion by Mr C. F. Thomas that advantage should be taken of the men returning' home to hold civic welcomes at which an appeal could be made for funds was strongly supported by Mr A. Atkinson who said tfiat there Ave re 17 men returned, from the Middle East to this district alone. These men would form a good nucleus for such a gathering. Mr Walter Armstrong opined that welcome home socials Avere actually more important than the fareAvell ceremony. Mr A. Hall said that in his opinion the committee and the R.S.A. had slipped oA r er the Avhole question of Ave looming home the men from oA'erseas. Many a man had arrh'cd back without anybody even to meet them. The chairman said he could not l.et that pass, as e\ r ery man of Avhom Uiey had been notified had been met. Many a time he had been to the station to meet men Avho had never arrived. He had gone to-a lot of trouble on? way jTnd another, and he felt particularly grateful to the Mayor, Mr Barry for the way in which he had co-operated Avith him.

Air Thomas emphasised the need in future to welcome the men returning home. It had not been so necessary in the past as many of the men had been repatriated on account of sickness. The future men however . would be veterans of Greece, Crete and Libya and were deserving of all the honour the community could give them.

Mr Shapley sai'cl that the ladies in tliis town had. perhaps given the matter more consideration than the men but at the same time lie could assure members that everything possible had been done to ensure that the men received some sort of welcome . The matter was left to be- more fully considered at a further meeting to be called in three weeds' time.