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Tens of thousands of New South Wales residents have marched and attended dawn services to mark Anzac Day but nothing personified the spirit of the day like one community coming together for a 99-year-old Digger.
It was a tradition that started in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic when commemorations and marches were cancelled and instead communities stood in their driveways to pay their respects.
Three years on at the Central Coast, hundreds gather outside 99-year-old Digger Jack Bartlett's Avoca home to mark the day.
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Bartlett served in World War II on HMAS Manoora working in aircraft carriers and as a jet mechanic.
"Grief and despair – two words that are synonymous with war," he told the crowd.
"We are assembled here this morning to remember the original Anzacs who gave their lives who now rest in strangely named towns far away overseas."
Veterans and current defence personnel attended the service alongside Bartlett.
The 99-year-old who is "still able to get around" makes sure to greet every attendee at his Avoca home service, from the young to the old.
"Still able to get around, and talk sensibly, not in a wheelchair or a nursing home. I'm a bit of a freak actually," he said about his age.
He said he looks forward to seeing everyone at his home again this time next year.
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Dawn services across Sydney
This was just one of the many commemorative services across the state today, most beginning at dawn with thousands paying their respects.
Hundreds gathered at Martin Place for the official dawn memorial while services were also held at beachside services in Bondi to Cronulla and west from Parramatta to the Blue Mountains.
Cenotaphs across the state were surrounded by the young and old paying their respects after years of COVID-19 restrictions limiting the commemorations.
"We've missed it over the last couple of years so it's nice to get back to it," one man said at the Martin Place dawn service.
"It means everything to me, it's like my Christmas… well I served and it's a chance to spend some time with my brothers and a chance to remember our forefathers and what they did," a veteran said.
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Thousands march to pay respects in Sydney's CBD
After the dawn services, a march through Sydney's CBD took place with over 10,000 people participating in what turned out to be the biggest parade since the pandemic.
Those who can no longer march were driven while others were wheeled down in wheelchairs.
Younger generations joined the veterans proudly holding photographs of their relatives who are no longer here.
"It is marvellous today. Excellent. We have missed this over the last couple of years, but we are here today. There are only two of us left out of the whole group. We are all in our 90s now," veteran Jim Law said.
The Anzac march was followed by a special service at the War Memorial.
How the suburbs celebrated
In NSW suburbs, memories of friends, families and loved ones were shared at commemorations all with a similar sentiment – no more war.
"It's a sad day, I remember a lot of comrades. They're all gone now," veteran Lindsay Dufty said in Narrabeen in Sydney's Northern Beaches.
"We don't any more war," another veteran said in Narrabeen.
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