HISTORY was made on Wednesday with the naming of the Dumaresq Village and Jonathan Rogers House, built on the site of the historic Nowra Park homestead as well as the celebration of the RSL LifeCare centenary.
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The 60-bed nursing home is now part of the RSL Lifecare organisation and plans for the restoration of the original homestead to be used as a community living area are under way.
Family members of Jonathan ‘Buck’ Rogers, who served as Chief Petty Officer on the ill-fated HMAS Voyager, were there to witness the unveiling of the official plaque honouring their father and grandfather.
Rogers was one of more than 50 men who were trapped in darkness in a compartment of the sinking forward section when the destroyer HMAS Voyager and aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne collided while conducting night exercises off Jervis Bay.
He took control and tried to bring calm to the disastrous situation.
Realising not all of those trapped would be able to get through a small escape hatch, he made sure that the younger men got out first, according to a survivor.
The forward section sank about 10 minutes after the impact.
Rogers was heard leading his remaining doomed comrades in a prayer and a hymn during their final moments.
It was for his actions that he was posthumously awarded the George Cross, the highest bravery award then available in peace time, “for organising the escape of as many as possible and encouraging ... those few who could not escape ... to meet death alongside himself with dignity and honour”.
Rogers was one of 82 men who lost their lives the night of February 10, 1964.
His son, Peter Rogers, was only 17 when the disaster occurred.
“The last time I saw my father he had given me a gold watch and I was playing basketball the night it happened,” Peter recalled.
“At exactly five minutes to nine that night a basketball hit the watch and it stopped, the exact time that the destroyer was hit.”
