NINETY-THREE-YEAR-OLD World War II gunner Victor Gardner seldom misses an Anzac Day service, and this year was no different.
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The retired farmer watched the Anzac Day march this year near the cenotaph with wife Esma and three generations of his family, son Steve and daughter-in-law Helen, grandson Ian and great grand daugther Maggie.
After finishing school, Victor worked on the family farm with his parents until he received notice to report for service in the army on February 14, 1942. He was drafted into an artillery unit called the First Australian Field Regiment.
Three months after he was recruited, Victor joined the Second Australian Imperial Force. After training for just over 12 months, the troops were loaded onto a train and set off for Darwin. He spent a total of six months in Darwin and a further 12 months in different camps down the road.
In June 1945, his unit was moved to the Atherton Tablelands, then onto Brisbane, before he was discharged in Sydney in January, 1946.
