The rain didn't dampen spirits at the Anzac Day dawn services in Port Macquarie and Wauchope, as hundreds of people from all generations came together to pay their respects to servicemen and women.
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Veterans, service personnel, and ex-service personnel gathered with schools from across the Hastings to march to the cenotaph for the 5:30am service on Thursday, April 25.
Although it was a rainy morning, the weather cleared for most of the Port Macquarie service.
Port Macquarie RSL sub-Branch president Jason Gill thanked the community for its strong attendance of the service.
"I thought it was going to be a sea of umbrellas, but the rain cleared for the most part, and it was a wonderful turnout," he said.
"The fact that so many people were willing to come here at this early hour and in the wet shows how much this day means to so many people."
Port Macquarie RSL sub-Branch Padre Ged Oldfield led the prayers at the dawn service, while the commemorative address was given by Moya Wills from Hastings Secondary College Westport Campus.
Wreaths were laid by various organisations across the Hastings while the crowd sang the New Zealand and Australian National Anthems to conclude the service.
Mr Gill said the community should reflect on "the service of those who have come before us, what that has meant for them, and how their service has shaped Australia and Australian culture."
Mr Gill also acknowledged that this year marks the 30th anniversary of the Rwanda massacre.
The 100-day genocide claimed about 800,000 lives in April 1994 when members of the majority ethnic Hutus and minority Tutsis and Twa were killed in a bloodbath led by extremist militia.
Australian soldiers were deployed to the United Nations Assistance Mission to Rwanda (UNAMIR), which was helping the nation transition to peace after the genocide.
"We have a contingent of those men who were deployed on that deployment year with us this year," Mr Gill said.
"They have chosen to have their reunion here in Port Macquarie, and we are honoured to have them here."
