PARTICIPATING in Anzac Day tributes at home last weekend gave a group of locals the chance to bond over Australian history.
Residents of Barmera’s Carnie Street were among Riverlanders who marked Anzac Day by standing in their driveways at dawn on Saturday.
Barmera woman Mary Taylor said more than a dozen of her neighbours joined the commemoration.
“Most of the street came out and we all had candles,” Ms Taylor said.
“There would have been 15 or 16 of us… I made white candles decorated with poppies and I gave everybody one.”
Ms Taylor said being able to reflect on her family’s connection to the military had always been important for her.
“My father was in the navy and I was quite interested to find out information about him… I dug into it and I met a brother who had been adopted at birth,” she said.
“He was actually in the navy (too) and he helped me get my Dad’s medals and all the literature from when (Dad) served.
“For 30 years I’ve been commemorating Anzac Day. I would wake up at dawn then go out to the cemetery... even though we couldn’t do that this year, we had to do something.”
Ms Taylor said the unique manner of commemorating Anzac Day this year provided an opportunity to build connections with neighbours.
“After we had the service on the radio on Saturday morning, everyone said how great it was to connect,” she said.