Private Alwyn Craig never had the honour of receiving his Vietnam War medals.
On November 7 a group of mates who he fought alongside more than half a century ago will come to Newcastle to right that wrong.
The Digger known as 'Shorty' grew up in Wollongong and was among 19,000 young Australians whose names were drawn in the National Service birthday ballot and sent to the war in 1969.
After infantry training with A Company in Townsville, he served as a driver with Support Company (Transport) with the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (6RAR).
He returned to Australia in May 1970 but reenlisted with the regular army for another four years.
Like many of his mates, Mr Craig struggled to adjust to civilian life.
He shunned Anzac Day and soon lost touch with his mates and family.
The streets of Newcastle became his home for three decades.
An article in the Newcastle Herald late last year triggered an extraordinary series of events that resulted in the 76-year-old being reunited with his lost family in Wollongong.
But, more than that, it put an end to a decades long search by the 6RAR Association for their lost mate.
Mr Craig's military service will be formally recognised with the presentation of his 9 medals and five clasps at a special service at Newcastle City Hall as part of A Company's annual reunion.
"We were already booked to be at Lake Macquarie, but having discovered Alwyn in Newcastle only a few months ago is going to make it incredibly special," 6RAR spokesman Barry Francis said.
"Several of us have tried to locate him in the past, as has his family. We are just incredibly grateful to everyone involved in finding him."
Mr Craig's transport division mates Alf Lamb and Steve Smith will present him with his medals.
The 6RAR members will be based at Wangi for their stay in the Hunter. Wangi is the home of Lieutenant Peter Hines, a platoon commander who was one of the two Australians killed in a minefield blast on July 21, 1969.
Lieutenant Hines and other fallen mates will be remembered at a Remembrance Day service at the town's war memorial on Monday November 11.
The 6RAR members will also gather for dinner at Wangi RSL on Saturday night. It will be followed by a performance of the play "Dusted off". The one-man play was written by Brett Hunt, the son of Frank Hunt who features in the Redgum song 'I was only 19'.
A place to call home and a brother's love
With the support of his brother Harold, Mr Carig has been settling into a one bedroom flat in Newcastle East over the past few months.
He can be found most days sitting around the old Newcastle train station until the sun goes down. He then makes his way back to his new 'home'.
"He won't sleep on the bed, he usually falls asleep on the couch," Harold Craig who has been helping him transition said.
"It's the little things he does that are so exciting - he can make himself a cup of coffee and sandwich now. He doesn't go overboard, he just throws a couple of slices of cheese on a piece of bread and rolls it up."
Harold Craig, once again extended his thanks to those who had shown kindness to his brother during the decades he spent living on the city's streets.
"It's absolutely phenomenal. There's so many people in the community who have played a role in helping him survive all those years," he said.
