Remembering Things Past

In the early 1950s, Rod Braybon's father died, leaving his mother with eight children she couldn't care for.

 

As a ward of the state, Rod ended up at the notorious Bayswater Boys' Home, run by the Salvation Army, near Melbourne.

 

Rod endured years of ill-treatment at the hands of the Salvation Army, then spent a life-time repressing the memories that haunted him.

 

Finally, after seeing an article in a newspaper, Rod decided to speak out.

 

His story created a nation-wide sensation and won a prestigious award for the journalist who broke it.

 

That Rod was willing to speak out to try and ease the suffering of others like him, is incredible.

 

That he survived at all, is nothing short of a miracle.

 

This short story is expanded in Vikki's full-length book Salvation.

 

Welcome to Crime Shots - short, sharp, true crime stories from Australia's past and present.