Anzac Day Commemoration

Chairman: George DeSouza

John Dean grew up in East Malvern and in Box Hill until 1963 when at the age of 28 he married in Warrrnambool. He is the father of two children and now proud grandfather of of five grandchildren.

To mark ANZAC day on the eve of the meeting, John Dean will outline his cousin’s heroic story in World War two.  Leslie Gordon Knight, DSO (7 March 1921 – 16 September 1943) was an Australian bomber pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force during the Second World War. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1943 for his role in Operation Chastise while flying with No. 617 Squadron RAF. Knight's crew, flying in N-Nan, attacked, hit and breached the Eder Dam, the second dam to be attacked, after his comrades had previously scored one hit and one miss.

Knight’s family lived in Camberwell. He was killed at the age of 21 and is buried at Den Ham General Cemetery in the Netherlands. John feels honoured that he has been asked to speak this evening about his heroic cousin, Les Knight.