Orange City Council has been awarded $12,265 to assist with the conservation of the Newman Park Great War Memorial Avenue, under new NSW Government funding announced last week.

Newman Park is one of 27 war memorials across 25 local government areas to receive a share of nearly $250,000 to ensure these memorials remain to honour the service and sacrifice of veterans.

Minister for Veterans David Harris made the announcement in Orange on Friday after meeting with veterans and their families from across the region at the inaugural Veterans

Forum, held at the Orange Ex-Services’ Club.

The funding will help with paving replacement and minor landscape enhancements to improve accessibility and preserve the reflective commemorative aspects of the memorial, Minister Harris said.

“In communities right across NSW, there are really important memorials from the First World War, the Second World War and other conflicts, particularly the Vietnam War, that are really treasured by local communities and those memorials are getting older,” Mr Harris said.

“World War One memorials are now over 100 years old and so the NSW Government, through these grants, helps communities to be able to do the essential maintenance or improvements that keeps those memorials in good shape so that our communities can commemorate the sacrifice of our men and women who have served Australia.”

The memorial in Newman Park dates back to August 1919, when the principal of the neighbouring East Orange Public School, Arnold T. Caldwell, arranged for the planting of a memorial avenue to honour the 17 former students who were killed in action or died of wounds during the First World War.

Orange Mayor Tony Mileto said the funding helps preserve an important chapter of our local history.

“Every year we get students from East Orange Public School come here and do a service to recognise the contribution and sacrifice that these soldiers made,” Cr Mileto said.

“What this will allow us to do is to stabilise the foundations, upgrade it to the way it should be upgraded, but also do some works around here with regards to improvements and gardens, so when people come here to reflect, they can do it in peace and acknowledge the sacrifices that these people have made.”