Thanks to the generous support of local individuals and businesses, bronze busts of slain local World War II nurses Dorothy Gwendoline ‘Bud’ Elmes and Caroline Mary ‘Carrie’ Ennis will be unveiled at Oxley on Saturday, 28 March at 11am.

The busts, which will be placed near the cenotaph where the nurses are named alongside soldiers of the shire who also died in World War II, are almost complete by statue makers Evalon Bronze.

Independent federal MP for Indi, Dr Helen Haines, will officially unveil the busts with Group Captain Kath Stein, former Director of Defence Force Nursing and current president of the Australian College of Nursing, to give a commemorative speech, along with members of Bud and Carrie’s families.

Sister Elmes and Sister Ennis (commissioned posthumously as Lieutenants) were among the last 65 nurses to be evacuated from Singapore on 12 February, 1942 aboard the Vyner Brooke.

The small vessel was bombed by the Japanese and sunk within half an hour.

Sister Elmes made it to Radji beach where she and 21 other Australian nurses were massacred - the only survivor being Sister Vivian Bullwinkle- while Sister Ennis was one of 12 nurses who were lost at sea following the bombing.

The busts are in addition to other local memorials to the nurses including a plaque at Northeast Health Wangaratta, a plaque and memorial tree at Cheshunt Hall, and a memorial for Bud at the Corowa Hospital where she trained.

The busts near the cenotaph give visitors the chance to put faces to the names and encourage further exploration of the story into the King Valley, and Cheshunt in particular, where both girls’ families were living when they enlisted.

Local donors and supporters have been instrumental in getting the project this far and president of Honouring Our Oxley World War II Nurses group, Belinda Harrison, thanked everyone for their support.

The families of both nurses also express their gratitude and thanks to the committee and all those involved in this project.

The Oxley Residents Association has also been a vital part and will maintain the site ongoing.

Community members are officially invited to share in the unveiling of the busts at 11am on Saturday, 28 March 2026 at Oxley Memorial Park, 68 King Street Oxley.

Light refreshments (provided by the Oxley Residents Association) will be provided following the official duties.