If crowds were impressive for the ANZAC Day dawn service then they were more impressive for the 9am march and service as thousands lined Molesworth Street to applaud war veterans, family members of fallen diggers and local schools as they walked their way to the Lismore Cenotaph.

The four to five thousand strong crowd were 20 deep as Lieutenant Colonel Ken Arnott was the Master of Ceremonies for the main ANZAC Day service. Ken has served his country for 50 years with 25 in the regular army and 25 in the reserves.

What the Lismore community has suffered in the last eight weeks was mentioned by each speaker this morning with Major Warren Walsh reminding us of the service the army performed during that time.

Ken Arnott - "Today amongst the trauma and disorder of the past eight weeks, we are assembled as a unified community to commemorate that important day when the young men of Australia via their deeds and sacrifice demonstrated to the world at Gallipoli and during World War One that Australia was truly a nation."

(Major Warren Walsh left and Ken Arnott right on stage at the Lismore Cenotaph)

Major Warren Walsh 41st Batallion Royal NSW Regiment - "It's hard not to reflect on most recent events, namely bushfire, pandemic and very recent floods that devastated our communities. These qualities of courage mateship, selflessness and service threads from the past, still abound today. During the February 2022 flood, your local reserve unit at the 41st battalion Royal New South Wales regiment had 70 members on the ground before, during and after helping our local communities from Tweed Heads to Grafton and all places affected in between, filling sandbags, door knocking to alert locals to evacuate, helping people move to evacuation centers and the massive cleanup of debris from houses and businesses."

"These local part time soldiers, possibly your neighbor on his way here today, answer the call to serve their communities, everyone they knew they would be affected by the coming flood. Unknowingly or maybe knowingly, continuing the traditions of the ANZAC courage, mateship, selflessness and service to help in time of need. Not forgetting the massive Australian Defence Force response that saw aircraft deployed and over 4000 Soldiers from all services and their associated equipment arrive in the Northern Rivers to assist at this crucial time of community need. This Anzac Day let us reflect on the meaning of ANZAC the threads that tie the past to our current day. Remember all those who died and those who carry physical or invisible words as a consequence of their service. Lest we forget."

(Mayor Steve Krieg addresses the large crowd)

Mayor Steve Krieg - "ANZAC Day has defined us as a country, our courageous spirit, our resilience, our determination and to be united as one. These characteristics have defined us for a country for over 150 years of conflicts but it also defines us today in Lismore as a city. Our region isn't facing a conflict but we are facing a significant challenge as a city but also as a region. Let's use the same characteristics of our forefathers to rebuild our future."

Mayor Krieg's comments were met with warm applause as the task ahead looms large but the ANZAC spirit will give everyone of us the courage to move forward.

At the North Lismore War Memorial at 8am, a small gathering commemorated ANZAC Day at the point where soldiers from all over the Northern Region met to sleep overnight and jump on the train to Brisbane the next day.

RAAF Veteran Bob Mowle led the service reminding people about the 80th anniversary of the end of the Pacific War, "Although we are here for ANZAC Day and Gallipoli, at the same time please remember what happened in World War 2. This is the day it ended, 80 years this year it all ended."

As you could imagine the North Lismore War Memorial was an absolute mess after the February 28 flood and Vietnam Veteran Ken Jolley OAM was cleaning up the memorial with the help of the army when a Major with his troops around him said, "This is just a beacon of hope for Lismore."

(Ken Jolley OAM left and Chris Hammond and East Timor veteran at the North Lismore War Memorial)

Ken also explained the veterans motorcycle club, the Rock Valley chapter came down and pressure cleaned the monument plus have laid a new slab to the top left, where a stone seat with a plaque will be built so they have somewhere to come and pay their respects.

"Us Vietnam vets, we're a dying race and these fellas here are the next generation."