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Military vehicles, veterans, living history displays and the sounds of the Royal New Zealand Navy Band will transform the Warkworth Showgrounds for a special Armistice in the Park event on Saturday, November 14.
Organised by Heritage Mahurangi, the event will run from 10am to 4pm and commemorate Armistice Day, which marks the end of hostilities in World War I on November 11, 1918.
A major attraction will be a parade and display of restored military vehicles from around New Zealand, including armoured cars, artillery and a World War I ambulance.
The Navy Band will lead a march of veterans, while Warkworth Primary School’s kapa haka group will also perform.
Living history displays will give visitors a closer look at different aspects of New Zealand’s wartime past, with organisers keen to make the event particularly accessible to younger generations.
Co-organiser Matt White says there appears to be growing interest among families in activities that take children away from screens and give them something they can experience first-hand.
With that in mind, the programme will include a range of interactive activities for children, including a confidence course with prizes.
White says the popularity of Warkworth’s annual Anzac Day commemorations, as well as military displays at the Warkworth A&P Show, demonstrate the strong local interest in military history and memorabilia.
The event will also have a research component. Descendants of soldiers who served with A Company of the 28th Māori Battalion are working on a book and will be at the showgrounds hoping to connect with people who may have information, photographs, documents or family stories that could assist their research.
Heritage Mahurangi chair Dave Parker says the day will also recognise Warkworth’s significant connection with American forces during World War II.
More than 5000 US Marines and soldiers were based in camps around the Warkworth district during the war, while training for the Pacific campaign.
Armistice in the Park will be held at the Warkworth Showgrounds on Saturday, November 14, from 10am to 4pm.
