By Shelby Brooks
Cockatoo Primary School’s Samuel Ware and his great-grandfather Samuel Pyke (Pa) share more than a name, despite being three generations apart.
“Both Pa and Sam share a happy-go-lucky personality and a cheeky sense of humour, which made spending time with them enjoyable,” Sam’s dad Greg Ware said.
“They also share a fondness for spending time with their families and love of the outdoors.”
Samuel Pyke, affectionately known as Pa to his friends and family when he was alive, was a Kokoda veteran with the 39th Battalion during WWII.
Sam Ware, 10-years-old, has enjoyed learning about his namesake’s military service.
“He went to Papa New Guinea to stop the Japanese from coming over,” Sam explained.
Sam’s mum Tamara continued: “They had no proper training, they were a bunch of boys from Dandenong, Noble Park and Keysborough who had a gun put in their hand and told go up the hill and stop the Japanese.”
“They were just left and told just hold that line,” she said.
“They were meant to be truck drivers, they didn’t have proper soldier training. If you think about what they did, it was amazing.”
Greg said it was Tamara who suggested naming young Samuel in his Pa’s honour.
“Without hesitation, I agreed,” Greg said.
“Although my Pa fought in World War II as a member of the 39th Battalion, he rarely spoke about his experiences to us as children.
“When I became an adult, I learned more about what he had been through, but even then, he never glorified or exaggerated his role. He always maintained that the war was ‘bloody stupid’ and that both sides were just running around shooting at each other.
“Despite his experiences during the war, my memories of my Pa are of a generous, kind, and easy-going man who enjoyed the simple things in life.
“He played a significant role in my life, as well as my brother’s and sisters’, and I am proud to pass on his name to my son.”
