Within 50 years of our Pilgrims and Early Settlers arriving in their new homes in New Zealand, these men and women and/or their children were recalled to the Motherland to fight wars in far off lands.
These are some of Our ANZAC Heroes and their stories, as told by their descendants.
Lest we forget 
Like many New Zealand families mine remembers losses and service during the two World Wars (and indeed the Boer War) that are part of our family story. I’ve listed a few from both my Wilson and Hood families from Canterbury, but would like to add that in addition to those who made the supreme sacrifice there were many others who served in the 3 services, one who became a prisoner-of-war following capture in Greece, and one who went on to serve in the J-Force after fighting in the Pacific. Several others were farmers who as essential workers were not conscripted but served in the Home Guard, and at least one single woman was “man-powered” ie required and directed to work in jobs to fill in for the men who were away. Others who were “too old” were involved in community work raising the required funds that each area had to contribute to the War Effort, not to mention the women knitting for men in the services and making up food parcels to send abroad to the service men. Those who died are remembered by re-use of their names down several generations. We have several Leslie Wilsons and Errol and Lisle Hoods!
Pam Wilson
Westland was Canterbury in the early days of the settlers.
The Canterbury Province, founded in 1853, initially extended from the West Coast to the East Coast of the South Island
By 1868, triggered by the population growth associated with the West Coast gold rush, the West Coast region was separated from Canterbury Province with the formation of the County of Westland – Source: Wikipedia