Garden of the Grieving Mother

Of the 3,801 World War 1 service men and women commemorated in the Ballarat Avenue of Honour, 1 in 5 made the ultimate sacrifice, giving their lives.

Many hundreds of those who did come home from this and later conflicts were forever changed by the physical and psychological wounds they had suffered. Families were left grieving for loved ones who did not return, or for loved ones whose lives had become shadows of what they might have been.

This garden is for them, centred around the 'Grieving Mother" statue by sculptor Peter Corlett OAM, in recognition of the bond between mother and child. The unique statue was formally unveiled on 15 February 2017 by Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Mrs Kaye Baird, mother of posthumous Victoria Cross recipient, Corporal Cameron Baird.