Stawell’s Carmen and Colin Dunster were both “amazed” when they discovered their Uncle Thomas E Dunster was listed in a World War I honour roll.
The hand-bound book containing a detailed profile of every person from Stawell who served in World War I was found in a storage cabinet beneath Stawell Secondary College last month.
Mr E Dunster grew up in Callawadda and was educated at the School of Mines Stawell, he then went to Sydney after the war, married and became a father to one son.
But his son Albert tragically died in his 50’s of a sudden heart attack on the tennis court.
Mr E Dunster was qualified as an electrical engineer and worked at the Sydney Morning Herald for his entire working life.
His nephew Colin said Mr E Dunster always worked nights at the Sydney Morning Herald, after many years he tried the day shift but could not adjust to sleeping at that time so continued on the night shift.
“We always remember Uncle Tom as kind, caring and happy, very down to earth, reliable and hardworking,” he said.
“Uncle Tom didn’t talk much about the war, he was in the Airforce, I remember his uniform being a lot smarter than his older brother, Albert.”
Albert enlisted in Ballarat, whilst living on a Willaura farm and and was killed in France.
