Mr LeBrocq, who grew up on the Macleay, made the decision to volunteer for the Royal Australian Navy to protect his country.

The now 89-year-old became the lead mechanical engineer at the age of 22 and spent 12 months fighting in the Korean War.

The ship Mr LeBrocq was serving on gave aid to the Armed Forces fighting against the Communist force of the North Koreans, who were attempting to take control of South Korea.

"We were there to protect the army that was fighting against the North Koreans on the ground - New Zealand, America, British Forces and a few other nations were all involved," Mr LeBrocq said.

"We helped them get out of a lot of trouble. We would then pick up the wounded and take them to the nearest hospital - there was bloody heaps of them."

Mr LeBrocq recalls the almost continual sound of gun fire whizzing through the air.

"We were bombarded from the shore all the time," Mr LeBrocq told the Argus.

"Bullets would fly at an almost constant rate, at night time it lit up the sky like fireworks.

"It was full on, we were always ready, we were under heavy gun fire all the time and when we weren't, we were just waiting for it to start again."

Of the 17,000 Australian soldiers who served during the Korean War, 340 were killed, 1216 wounded and 29 became prisoners of war.

Despite this though, Mr LeBrocq claims the soldiers were barely appreciated upon their return.

"If I am to be honest, barely anyone knew we were away fighting a war," the Dondingalong resident said.

"We never got any recognition for what we did. We came into Sydney and there was no one there to greet us, even today, I think the Korean War is the forgotten war, there isn't many people who know it happened."

However, Mr LeBrocq, who went on to serve in the Navy for six years and was an active reserve for the following five years, is grateful for the recognition from the South Koreans.

"It's greatly appreciated, the South Koreans have always given us gratitude as they truly understand what we did and sacrificed for them," he said.

"There isn't many of us left but there was a lot of great men who did great things in that war and they deserve the acknowledgement."

After returning from the Korean War and while still involved in the Navy, Mr LeBrocq met the love of his life Flora, who he married in 1955.

The two had four children together and are looking forward to celebrating their 64th wedding anniversary this year.

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