My Account
Attending the dawn service at Anzac Cove, followed by the NZ Service at Chunuk Bair will be an emotional experience for Ron Davidson of Stanmore Bay.
Ron’s grandfather, Francis Ward, and great uncles, Charles and Roy Caterer, all served at Gallipoli and he and his wife Trish said they consider themselves very fortunate to obtain passes to the centennial commemorations to show their respects.
Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant Francis William Ward enlisted with the NZ Medical Corps at the age of 23. He served on the Hospital Ship Marama, collecting the sick and wounded from Gallipoli for further care in England.
Marama subsequently carried wounded from Malta, Greece, and Le Havre, was used as a base hospital in the Balkan war and carried wounded from the Battle of the Somme, back to England. It also made voyages back to NZ, bringing home wounded Kiwi soldiers. Francis was discharged in January 1919 and later went on to become the Chief Commissioner for St John in NZ.
Quartermaster Sergeant Charles Frederick Caterer enlisted in the Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment when he was 30 years old. He served at Gallipoli and was wounded in the face and shoulder at Chunuk Bair. He recovered first in Malta and Wales then returned to NZ, serving the rest of his wartime on various troop ships. Charles was discharged in March 1919, but died in 1922 as a result of haemorrhaging from old war wounds.
His brother, Second Lieutenant Roydan Frederick Caterer, was 26 when he enlisted with the Wellington Infantry Battalion. He served at Gallipoli and then in Western Europe, where he was severely wounded in the thigh in 1917 and was sent to the UK to recuperate. While there he was trained at the Officer Cadet School at Oxford University. Roy was discharged in June 1919 and went on to have a long and prosperous life as a farmer.
