New curator comes home to Waiouru

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 273, 7 February 1989, Page 9

New curator comes home to Waiouru

By

Myra

. MacGibbon

Major Dave Mowat started as the new curator of the Army Museum in Waiouru on January 5. He says he is still finding his feet as it were and deciding upon the direction the Museum should take over the next couple of years.

This will be Major Mowat's 5th tour of duty in Waiouru, and he describes it as almost. coming home. His military career started here in 1958 when he joined Regular Force Cadets, graduating in 1959. He took on the trade of panel beater, completing an apprenticeship in Trentham

where he remained until 1964, when he was posted back to Waiouru as a National Service Instructor (NSTU) for some seven intakes. He left this position in 1968 and became an instructor at RNZEME Schools until 1970. By then a Sergeant, he' took the post of CSM

at Waiouru Workshops for a few months and then, promoted to Staff Sergeant, he moved to Linton as CSM of 1 General Troops Workshop (now known as LAW.) Between the years 1975 - 1978 he was once again back in Waiouru where he took over the position of CSM of B Company RF Cadets and after two years and a promotion to WOl he became RF Cadets School's SSM. 1978 saw him commissioned and still in Waiouru. Transferred to SEME, he became the 2IC, then he went onto the Armourer Regiment LAD (now QA Sqn) until 1982. In May of 1983 the then Captain Mowat was posted to Singapore as the OC of NZ Workshops for two years. Between May 1985 and now the Mowat's have spent time in Waiouru and Papakura, before Major Mowat's appointment as Museum Curator. Major Mowat is married and he and his wife Rosemary and their two

children Fiona (17) and Robert (14.) once again reside in Waiouru. As curator of the Museum, several things are on his agenda for 1989. Some time later in the year sees the closure of the 28th Maori Battalion display, but as yet dates are still to be finalised. Now comes to question of what to put in it's place and several options are open. These include arts and crafts of the soldier, women at war, or perhaps a display marking the 50th Anniversary of WWII, or possibly the return of the NZ Battalion, which returns from Singapore. The decision will be in the hands of the Museum Trust Board. As to Expansion of the Museum, this too is very much in the future. No formal plans have yet been made, but this is certainly likely to happen because, as Major Mowat explained, the need for space to display items generously donated to the museum is growing.