Armistice Day Memorial Walk on Monday

We will meet at the northern entrance to the Museum (other side to usual meeting.) We will walk to Newmarket to find out a little bit about a soldier and his family who died during WW1.

This family was also affected by the Spanish flu. An estimated 930 personnel in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) died from the 1918–1919 Spanish influenza pandemic, accounting for about 5.1% of all New Zealand military deaths during World War I. The 930 NZEF deaths occurred alongside New Zealand’s broader national disaster, which killed approximately 9,000 civilians (including ~2,500 Māori) in just a few weeks of late 1918.

This will be approx 8.5km 2 hours depending on the pace of the group. Mostly on foot paths however there will be some tracks also.

Armistice Day this Wednesday 11 November (also sometimes referred to as Remembrance Day) marks the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended WW1 and commemorates the sacrifice of those who died serving New Zealand in this and all wars and armed conflict. The Great War of 1914 to 1918 was one of the most devastating events in human history. New Zealand, with a population of 1.1 million in 1914, sent 100,000 men and women abroad. 16,700 died and over 40,000 were wounded – a higher per capita casualty rate than any other country involved. The coming of peace on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 brought blessed relief for all involved. On Armistice Day 1918, New Zealand had 58,129 troops in the field, while an additional 10,000 were under training in New Zealand. In total, the troops provided for foreign-service by New Zealand during the War represented 10% of its 1914 population between the ages of 20-45. The signing of the Armistice is observed annually in New Zealand at 11am on 11 November (the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month). Two minutes silence is observed in memory of those New Zealanders who died while serving their country.

Please note we request a gold coin donation for participation in order to cover some of the costs incurred by the leaders for their organisation. Items such as outdoor magazine subscriptions, safety equipment (eg PLB) and the website costs etc.

Our Intrepid bank account is 06-0996-0609501-04 if you want to transfer money for the gold coin donation. (Use your meetup name as a reference.)

It can get busy at the Museum if there is an event so please allow time to find a carpark. We will leave on time in fairness to the whole group.

If you can't make it in time please remove your RSVP so that we know that you are not attending.