Veterans day in America is called Remembrance day in Australia. As a child, I vividly recall my entire school stopping everything for one minute of silence at 11am on the 11th day of the 11th month to remember. Here’s my 2011 digital version of that same minute of silence – to remember men and women who served in wars past and present and to hope for peace in the future.

For more moving images, check out the LIFE gallery of 50 photos that brought the war home.