The Diggers’ champion

Her particular interest in fallen soldiers has led to Ms Playle being nominated for a Pride of Australia Medal in the Community Spirit category.

‘I believe every soldier has earned the right to live forever,’ she said.

‘We owe it to them to preserve their history and tell their story.’

While visiting cemeteries, Ms Playle took it upon herself to tend to the Diggers’ grave stones that were in disrepair. Ms Playle has lobbied for the Government to take care of the grave sites. Her involvement in the Karrakatta Campaign involved protesting the planned destruction of World War I headstones.

A self confessed ‘history fanatic,’ Ms Payle teamed up with police officer Tim Lycett to identify hundreds of diggers killed in the Battle of Fromelles. Their book Fromelles: The Final Chapters was released this month.

Another of Ms Playle’s missions is to help find lost war medals. She scours the internet and other sites, buys the medals and returns them to the soldier’s families.