Army mates farewell fallen soldiers

In the hell-hole that is Afghanistan, Sapper Jacob "Snowy" Moerland, country boy and
larrikin, could lift the morale of his digger mates in an instant, a memorial
service has heard.
Sapper Moerland, just 21, and Sapper Darren Smith, 26, were farewelled by their 2nd
Combat Engineer Regiment at Gallipoli Barracks at Enoggera at 2pm (AEST) on Tuesday.
They died on June 7 when a roadside bomb exploded during a foot patrol in the
restive Mirabad Valley, east of Australia's main Afghanistan base at Tarin Kowt.
About 1000 colleagues - in their khaki greens - paid tribute to the diggers in the
presence of their grief-stricken partners, Sapper Moerland's fiancee, Kezia Mulcahy,
and Sapper Smith's wife, Angela, whose families stayed close by to support them with
a hug.
Lance Corporal Nicholas Lines read the eulogy for Sapper Moerland, describing a man
who knew how to cause a stir and make everybody laugh.
"Snowy" was a six-foot-tall country boy, with big blue eyes and a shock of white hair.
He stuck out in a crowd, but it was no surprise he took his dedication to camouflage
to an extreme.
"To prove his point, he used cam-cream to camouflage his hair for three weeks
straight," Lance Corp Lines said.
Sapper Moerland didn't shy away from challenges and when tasked with eating raw
cow's eyes, he "licked the plate clean".
"When the morale of the troop is down, it can be hard to pick it up again, but not
when Snowy was around.
"He had a way of sucking you up in the whirlwind his personality created.
"I take solace he died doing what he loved, protecting his brothers and leading the
way."
Lieutenant Colonel John Carey paid tribute to Sapper Smith and his canine workmate
Herbie, who also died in the explosion.
"The bond between himself and Herbie was evident to all, and on the job he was
serious and professional," Lt-Col Carey told the mourners.
"Off duty, he had a great sense of humour and had great bonds with his mates."
Sapper Smith also leaves behind a two-year-old son Mason.
Herbie will be cremated in Afghanistan because of quarantine regulations and his
ashes will be returned home to Angela Smith.
Later in the week, the men will be laid to rest.
A funeral service for Sapper Moerland will be held at 11am (AEST) on June 17 at the
community hall in his home town of Gayndah, west of Maryborough.
Sapper Smith will be farewelled at the Marist College in Ashgrove in Brisbane at
11am on June 19.
Politicians in Canberra on Tuesday also paid tribute to the two soldiers.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd expressed deeply felt sympathy and offered the "solidarity
and support of the Australian people".
"On Monday the 7th of June, Australia lost two of its bravest sons," he told
parliament on Tuesday.
"Those who feel and experience up front and first are their comrades in arms who are
with them and who bring their broken bodies back to the base as Tarin Kowt."
But, he said, it was their families that would feel the loss most.
"As we stand here and reflect today on the grief which the nation feels and the
grief which the members of the Australian Defence Force feel, there is nothing
comparable with the grief which these soldiers' families and loved ones feel now and
into the future."
Opposition Leader Tony Abbott warned of the consequences if Australia and other
nations failed to fulfill their mission.
"Certainly, our soldiers understand the consequences for the world and for Australia
should Afghanistan once more become a safe haven for terrorists," he said.
In the Senate, Defence Minister John Faulkner told of his "deep sorrow".
He said both soldiers exemplified the finest digger characteristics of courage,
loyalty, resistance and determination.
"The loses are a sombre reminder of the costs of this combat," Senator Faulkner ad