HUNDREDS of mourners attended Brisbane’s St Stephen’s Cathedral for the military funeral of Trooper David Pearce killed in Afghanistan.
Prime Minister John Howard, Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd and Defence Force head Angus Houston were among mourners at the October 17 service.
Trooper Pearce’s casket, draped in the Australian flag, was piped into the cathedral to the tune of “Amazing Grace”.
A personal eulogy was delivered by the dead soldier’s brother Edward Pearce while a military eulogy was delivered by Trooper Pearce’s commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Chris Websdane.
The 41-year-old father of two from Oxenford, south of Brisbane, was killed by a roadside bomb while driving a light armoured vehicle in Afghanistan’s Oruzgan Province on October 8.
He left behind his widow Nicole and two daughters, Stephanie, 11, and Hannah, six.
Trooper Pearce was a member of the Brisbane-based 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment.
Nicknamed “Poppy” by his colleagues because of his age, Trooper Pearce had only been in Afghanistan a few weeks before he was killed.
At the end of the ceremony, Trooper Pearce’s slouch hat and the Australian flag that was draped over his casket were handed to his widow.
