History of the Foote Sanctuary

The Foote family, were successful retail business owners, who holidayed regularly at Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast approximately 100 kms North of Brisbane. The family relocated to Buderim in 1907 where Joseph had bought 220 hectares (540 acres) they established a mixed farm producing citrus fruits, coffee, pineapples, pecans and bananas.

In 1908 a mutation was found growing amongst the traditional Cavendish bananas. By 1912 the mutation had become the "Mon Mari" banana which was named after where Joseph lived. The "Mon Mari" is now one of the two major common varieties of bananas in Australia.

The family had no problems adjusting to their new life, they threw themselves into local affairs and although relative latecomers to the community, they were soon accorded pioneer status.

As the eldest and most adventurous, Eric soon struck out on his own. He farmed at nearby Woombye, bred horses and won countless ribbons at the Brisbane Show.

He was good looking, athletic and a typical sun bronzed Aussie country boy.

"The Great War" (1914 - 1918)

Like so many other young Australians, Eric answered the call when World War 1 broke out in 1914. On 21st October, 1915 Sergent Eric Foote along with the rest of the 9th battalion, left Australian shores on board the troop carries SS Seeangbee bound for Egypt in the Middle East where Australian and New Zealand troops were being trained for the upcoming battle on the Western front. Their presence also deterred the possible attack by Turkish forces on the Suez Canal, an important supply route.

Eric became very ill with heat stroke and dysentry resulting in the 9th batallion leaving for the front without him. In order to rejoin the fight. Eric voluntarily accepted a demotion to the ranks and transferred to another batallion, the 49th, with the new rank of private. Within a month he was promoted to Corporal and was shipped to Marseilles, France, arriving in June 1916 as a member of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF).

The ANZAC and BEF presence in France and Belgium had been established for almost two years. In the first year of the war, after only four months of fighting, there were 90,000 casualties and of these 50,000 were reported dead or missing presumed dead. The old regular British Army had all but been obliterated.

1915 had seen a series of disastrous battles for the allies beginning with Neuve Chappelle and ending with the trenches of Ypres or Loos. The death toll mounted to 92,000 men during this period with countless others wounded. Despite the losses a steady stream of eager young men were hastily formed into divisions used to reinforce the dwindling British and French front lines.

This front extended some 500 miles from Ypres, to the North of France to the Swiss border in the South. The Allied troops and their German adversaries were now locked in the deadly siege warfare of the trenches, characterized by discomfort, disease, boredom and unbelievable fear. It was believed that the best way to win the war in Europe would be by sheer weight of Numbers, so the tactics in trench warfare were simple and deadly.

On hearing the call vast groups of men would pour from the shaky safety of the trenches and advance forward in order to gain ground forcing the enemy back.

One can only imagine the slaughter these young men face when going over the top into a storm of bullets and raining shells.

It was in this horrifying environment that Eric Foote would live, fight and eventually meet his death on 13th September 1916 at Mouquet Farm in France aged 25 years.

Eric is buried at Thiepval. He received the Military Medal for bravery. Among Eric's belongings was a gum leaf that he had carried throughout his campaigns, perhaps this was the greater treasure, a symbol of the way Eric had lived rather than the way he died. A reminder of Eric's deep love for the Australian Bush and all it's creatures. The extent of Eric Foote's sacrifice is already known, but thanks to his younger brothers Eric Foote's memory is captured in more than a fading sepia photo. In 1945 when Australia emerged from the years of yet another world war, the farmers of Buderim faced a changed economic climate. Farms were broken up and sold off 17 of the less fertile acres of Joseph Foote's original run were donated by his surviving sons, Arnold and Hubert, to the people of Buderim. They dedicated the land to the memory of their elder brother, who had been lost so many years before.

In 1964 the gum leaf was still in his younger brother Hubert's possession.

The Military Medal (MM) was awarded to Eric for bravery

The Military Medal was (until1993) a military medal awarded to personnel of the British Army and other services, and formerly also to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land.

The medal was established on 25th March 1916. It was the other ranks' equivalent to the Military Cross, which was awarded to commissioned officers and Warrant Officers (although WOs could also be awarded the MM), although it took precedence below that decoration as well as the Distinguished Conduct Medal, also awarded to non-commissioned members of the Army. Recipients of the Military Medal are entitled to use the post-nominal letters "MM". In 1993, the Military Medal was discontinued, and since then the Military Cross has been awarded to personnel of all ranks.

Eric Joseph Foote 1891-1916