More than 900 students assembled in the Stalker Auditorium to take part in the school’s pre-Anzac Day ceremony, which included a minute of silence, the Last Post and reveille.

Warrnambool-based service personnel Corporal Joshua Petering and Private Melanie Layton were present at the service along with Ballarat-based Vietnam veteran Bob Creelman.

Corporal Petering has previously been deployed for peacekeeping operations in the Solomon Islands and Private Layton has served in the Persian Gulf, Sumatra and the Solomon Islands.

Warrnambool RSL president John Miles said Brauer College and schools throughout the south-west worked hard to instil a sense of citizenship and appreciation of Australia’s military history.

“The kids hear about it at school, learn about it in the classroom and really take it all in,” Mr Miles said.

“What’s really great to see is that they come along to the dawn service, or the morning service on Anzac Day of their own choice. They recognise how important it is to remember and that process starts in schools.” 

Brauer College principal Jane Boyle said many students had a keen interest in the nation’s military heritage, with a combined secondary school delegation travelling to Gallipoli this month.

“When you have 900 students taking part in a minute of silence and there’s not a sound, it shows that a new generation really do appreciate the Anzac legacy and what it means for Australia,” Ms Boyle said.