Tom celebrates 101st birthday

Thomas Fisher Service Number 649354 Thomas Fisher has celebrated his 101st birthday surrounded by family and members of the Grenfell RSL Sub-Branch. Tom was celebrated on Saturday 23 May at the Grenfell Bowling Club alongside Sub-Branch vice president Michael Savage and Lloyd Thomas. One of his seven children brought him down from the Grenfell Multi-Purpose Health Service(MPS), and he was over joyed in seeing all of his seven children and their respective families that had travelled over from New Zealand and interstate to help celebrate his birthday. Tom enjoyed conversing with each and every member of his family including grand and great grandchildren. Members from Grenfell RSL Sub-Branch were in attendance as guest of the family, and to present Thomas with the New Zealand Defence Force Medal, (that the family where made aware through the Grenfell RSL’s investigation into his service history with the New Zealand Defence Force as he had served in World War 2) whilst part of J Force. Thomas James Fisher was born on 24 May 1925 at Manurewa, North Island, New Zealand. Thomas enlisted in the New Zealand Defence Force (Army) at the age of 19 at Papakura, in 1944 and was allocated to the Royal New Zealand Engineer Corps - Rank- Sapper. After initial training, he was sent to Japan from October 1945 to December 1946 with the Occupation Force Coalition (J Force), just 3 months after the dropping of the Hiroshima Bomb. They travelled over from Wellington on the Ship named Chitral, embarking at the Australian Air Force Base at Bofa in Japan. He served in two towns, the first being Chofu, for 6 months, and the second posting being at Yamachan, for 12 months. In January 1947, Tom was transported back to Wellington, New Zealand, on the Ship Dunerra, where he was discharged from the New Zealand Defence Force (Army) in 1947. He has had numerous conversations with Lloyd Thomas where he talked about his time in Japan (he has never discussed this with his family as they were surprise to find out that he had spent time in Japan after the bombing), and how the Japanese people were very happy with the War being over, to the extent that the people from the towns where he was stationed invited them for meals. Whilst out on patrol he was fired upon and the section returned fire with no causalities to the patrol. After Discharge from the New Zealand Defence Force (Army), Tom became a farmer in New Zealand, until he came over to Australia in 1979, where he worked as a Maintenance Manager in an apartment complex and in the wax museum on the Gold Coast. Tom is a Life Member of the Nerang RSL Sub-Branch. He came to Grenfell in 2022 to be closer to his son. Tom also has two sons, who have served in the New Zealand Army. Presently Thomas Fisher is the oldest veteran and is one of two remaining WW2 veterans alive in the Grenfell community. Grenfell RSL Sub Branch meets every First Tuesday of the Month at 6pm at the Grenfell Railway Station.