Memorial Garden

Commissioned to create the mural at Suncorp Stadium, Lee Harnden is an internationally recognised street artist with a career spanning over 26 years.

Each of the 41 that were killed has their own cast bronze plaque and another 42nd plaque is dedicated to all those that were killed in training or have taken their own lives due to issues from their service.

We also pay tribute to the often unsung four-legged heroes from the War in Afghanistan, our explosive detection and special operations dogs that were killed on deployment.

There will be park benches around the garden that will each be dedicated to the 4 recipients of the Victoria Cross for Australia and the fifth bench for Kuga, a dog that received the Dicken Medal (awarded for conspicuous gallantry by an animal serving with the armed forces).

The plaques are being made in Western Australia by Talbot and Walsh who have been fantastic supporters of 42 for 42 and have dedicated many hours to design, cast and finish each plaque by hand.

Wayne Strickland is an Australian Artist specialising in Australian Oil Paintings & Bronze Sculptures. Strickland’s audience is well and truly international.

One of his works was presented to (then) US President Ronald Reagan, another was commissioned by a Swiss multinational corporation and yet more make up public & private collections across Britain, Canada, France, New Zealand, America & Japan.

It’s an absolute honour and privilege for everyone on the 42 for 42 team to have this great Australian artist contribute one of his amazing skill sets by bronze casting the life-size feature statue for the memorial garden here in Brisbane.

Wayne has done an amazing job capturing the hardships and hearts and minds of Australian veterans serving in Afghanistan.

The Memorial Garden in the grounds of Suncorp Stadium, beside the Anglican Church of Australia, is a wonderful opportunity to show pride, respect and honour to those that have fallen and walk tall beside their families and brothers-in-arms.

The idea of the mural is it to stand out from other memorial sites, immersing the individual in the environment of Afghanistan. The 42 for 42 obtained a Government grant as well as getting assistance from the Australia army for the project.

The elements of the mural include:

• The ode, which was spawned from WW1, and is the no.1 military recited poem.
• The bushmaster Vehicle along with the ASLAV were the main two military vehicles used by the Australian Army in Afghanistan.
• The Australian flag and Special Forces soldier to represent the large role the Special Forces played during the campaign.
• The Australian Defence Force badge to represent all military forces deployed to Afghanistan.
• The red poppy which is widely used as a symbol of remembrance for soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice since WW1.
• A traditional Afghanistan landscape from the jagged mountainous terrain down into the “Green Zone” along the rivers that the soldiers fought in

The working dog represents the military dogs that served in Afghanistan during the conflict that tirelessly worked in order to preserve human life of the Australian Defence Forces, Coalition Forces and Afghanistan people. The dogs that served in Afghanistan were proven force multipliers and served in two distinct roles, the Explosive Detection Dog (EDD) and the Combat Assault Dog (CAD). The dogs, by detecting explosives or detecting/engaging the enemy, reduced not only Australian casualties, but those working with us and those we sought to protect.

The dogs worked in snow and in blistering heat, day or night traveling over thousands of kilometers through harsh terrain on their paws guided by their bonds to their handlers. During the Afghanistan campaign, five EDD’s and three CAD’s would pay the ultimate sacrifice, two EDD’s would be listed as missing in action, one of which, fortunately returned.

The dog depicted by the memorial statue, one of many that served in Afghanistan is EDD Tank, a Belgian Malinois. EDD Tank deployed on two occasions (MTF I – 2010 and MTF III – 2011), finding numerous improvised explosive devices and enemy weapon caches including on one occasion, an explosive device located directly beside an infantry soldier who was kneeling, scanning for the enemy.

The statue depicts EDD Tank in working pose with his ears alert, searching for an ever present threat while looking back to his handler for hand signals to be directed his next search area which illustrates the working bond between military working dog, handler and team.

Australian Defence Force Working Dog Roll of Honor, Afghanistan

There will be 5 information boards at the beginning of the memorial, opposite the entrance of the site. The boards will share significant information in the Afghanistan campaign, such as it was Australia’s longest conflict in war,  the different types of task force engaged in Afghanistan such as; SOTG, RTF, MRTF and MTF.

A map of the Oruzgan province will also be on display to show the Australian patrol bases that operated in the area.

Most importantly, the boards will have QR code to download the 42 for 42 APP and will allow visitors to uncover detailed information about the veterans, their time at war and the assistance available to recovering veterans back in Australia.