The Lane Cove Council and Lane Cove RSL Sub-Branch again held a moving Remembrance Day Service.
In attendance were the Federal Member for Bennelong Jerome Laxale MP, Mayor Merri Southwood, Councillor Caleb Taylor, Lane Cove Council General Manager Louise Kerr, representatives from the North Shore Police Area Command and Willoughby Lane Cove SES, former councillors, local community groups and local students, as well as Lane Cove residents.
At the 2026 Lane Cove Remembrance Day Service, the Lane Cove RSL Sub-Branch featured a tribute to Staff Sergeant John Thane Ewing.
John Ewing passed away on 17 May 2026, aged 90.
The tribute was read by Damian Sharpe, whose wife’s father Robert (Tatts) Tatler served with John in the Citizen Military Forces.
“As a matter of interest, John’s middle name was ‘Thane’, which has its origins in medieval England and Scotland as a historical feudal lord or a freeman who held land from a king in exchange for military service.
“Brigadier David Leece notes that:
“John did national service in the 1950s and was posted to the 30th Battalion, The New South Wales Scottish Regiment.
After he completed his national service obligation, he continued his service in the Citizen Military Forces and its successor, the Army Reserve. An infantryman, he transferred from the 30th Battalion in 1960 to the Royal New South Wales Regiment, serving with the 2nd Battalion (Pentropic Battle Group) and later the 17th Battalion.
He completed his service with the University of NSW Regiment.
When John was a Sergeant he was in many of the Regimental Colour Parties because of his bearing and drill.
As a Staff Sergeant he was responsible for logistics at the Company level, a position well suited for his attention to detail.
John was a very loyal and devoted servant of the Crown through the Australian Army and later the Royal United Services Institute. He had a good grasp of strategy and tactics and maintained a commendable grasp of current affairs relevant to defence and security issues up until his death.”
“Frank Woodhams, President of the NSW Scottish Regimental Association, recalls that:
“To reduce the cost to members attending Association dinners John donated money on the condition that:
- I would not divulge his name; and
- When we served Haggis, he also wanted an additional entrée served at the same time as the Haggis, so his guests had a choice.
According to John, many of his guests were his sisters. Strangely, over the years, he must have had many sisters, since they weren’t always the same ones at each function.”
“At his funeral the MC noted that:
“John was a man of precision, discipline and standards.
As an accountant, he believed things should be done properly. Words mattered. Timing mattered. Details mattered. The Queen’s English mattered. John appreciated order, accuracy and people who carried themselves well.”
“John was an active member of the Lane Cove RSL Sub-Branch and Sydney Community Services.
“John never married but for many years he sponsored a Vietnamese lass, Sunny, who is now a PhD student living in America.
“On behalf of my wife Tracie, we thank you for this opportunity to pay tribute to our family friend, Staff Sergeant John Thane Ewing.”
National Service training, 1951 to 1959
According to the Australian War Memorial:
“Compulsory military training for young Australians was reintroduced in 1951 by the Liberal and Country Party alliance Government. It was the third such scheme to have existed in Australia since Federation. Eighteen-year-old men were required to undertake 176 days of military training as part of the National Service scheme. Those who elected to undertake their training in the army could break up their training requirements into two periods, 98 days in the Australian Regular Army and 78 days in the Citizen Military Forces (CMF). Those who elected to undertake their training with the Royal Australian Navy or the Royal Australian Air Force had to complete their 176 days in one stretch.”
The Lane Cove RSL Sub-Branch holds monthly military talks in the Lane Cove Library and their next big event will be the Anzac Day service in The Canopy in 2027.
Get the Lane Cove news in your inbox every Thursday.
Support independent local news
In the Cove is 100% free to read, with no paywall, and it always will be. We write for the community, from within the community. If you value local news, chipping in helps keep it coming.
Proud member of LINA, the Local & Independent News Association. Want to reach locals?
