The window was the gift of Mrs. Merna Kidgell, who erected the memorial to her husband and his twin brother, also to a specific bomber crew, and in honour of Old Ivanhoe Grammarians who fought and who died in the Second World War. The design shows an airman, kneeling on the back of an eagle; the young man gazes heavenwards, his arms outstretched. The window was dedicated on the eve of Anzac Day, 2001.
James Ian Kidgell and Cecil Gawthorne Kidgell were born on 4 March 1921 in Wangaratta. Both men enlisted in the Air Force, Cecil on 25 October 1940 and Ian on 30 January 1942. As noted on the window, Cecil survived the war, however his twin did not, dying in an aircraft accident on 21 November 1944.
A plaque was placed to honour the memory of the seven man crew of Stirling Bomber Mark IV LK276, 190 Squadron, who were killed with Kidgell in the flight accident at Newton Field, Great Donmow, Essex. The men were from the RAF, NZAF with Flight Officer JI Kidgell, the only Australian. A second plaque below the window 'honours 65 Old Ivanhoe Grammarians who gave their lives and the nearly 700 who served their country during World War 2'.
References & Acknowledgements
AWM Roll of Honour; NAA: A705, 166/22/369; WWII Nominal Roll; Argus 13 December 1944, p.2; www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/190_wwII; www.raf38group.org/190squadron;
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