ANZAC Day is commemorated across the country in many ways, but they don’t come much bigger than the 10 hay bale soldiers standing at Mologa, near Pyramid Hill.
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For designer and artist Denise Leed, the bales are doubly poignant.
Not only do they represent 10 fallen Mologa soldiers who were lost in battle, they also represent a dream of Denise’s last husband, Allan, who was tragically killed in an accident on the family property last July.
Allan wanted to celebrate the 100-year centenary of the unveiling of the Mologa War Memorial by honouring the fallen — each bale reflects the personal details of the soldiers including eye colour and medals.
The Mologa war memorial was unveiled in 1920 by Sarah Morrow who lost three of her five sons at war. Allan lost two of his uncles, Ray Leed and Robert Campbell.
In the early 2010s the community began hosting services at the memorial, which is now maintained by locals including the Landcare group.
There is no denying the hay bale sculptures are an eye-catching spectacle for those driving along the Bendigo-Pyramid Road, but Denise said they wouldn’t have come to fruition without the help of family and friends who rallied around to get the job done.
“Allan didn’t tell anyone about what he wanted to do but he talked about it frequently. He was the keeper of the family history,” Denise said.
She said Allan only began to learn about the family’s connection to World War I when the couple bought a 125-acre property from Uncle Jack, who sat Allan down for a family history lesson every time he dropped a payment for the property around.
“It was a big jigsaw puzzle and Allan loved hearing and learning all about it. Uncle Ray grew up in the family home Allan and I shared since 1978,” she said.
Both Allan and Denise went on to develop a keen interest in Australian war history and visited France twice, including the on centenary of the Battle of Fromelles.
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