War Widows Day is on Monday 19 October 2026. It is a day to recognise the courage, resilience and contribution of Australia’s war widows, and this year marks the fifth War Widows Day in NSW.
It also falls in the Guild’s 80th anniversary. To mark the milestone, this year’s War Widows Day pin has a special design. Only 250 have been made.
As it has every year, the pin gives every Australian a simple way to honour war widows and the families whose lives were shaped by service and sacrifice.
What the War Widows Day pin means
The War Widows Day pin is an act of remembrance you can wear. It honours the sacrifices made by war widows, widowers, and families of our veterans, and makes visible a sacrifice that often goes unseen.
More than 28,000 war widows and widowers live across Australia, and more than 8,000 in NSW. Behind every number is a story of love, service, grief and resilience. Behind every veteran’s service is a family whose life was shaped by it too.
Anyone can wear the pin, on a lapel, jacket or bag. It shows solidarity with the war widow community and often starts a conversation. When you wear the pin, you carry our war widows stories into your community.
Why the wattle?
Golden wattle is Australia’s national floral emblem. Its link to service also runs deep. During the First World War, sprigs of wattle were pressed and sent to wounded Australian soldiers overseas as a reminder of home. Pressed wattle were also buried with fallen soldiers far from Australia.
More than a century on, the wattle connects those generations with today’s war widows and families. It mirrors the sprigs laid at War Widows Day commemorations. It stands for resilience, strength, endurance and renewal, and reflects both personal grief and national remembrance.
A special design for the Guild’s 80th year
Each year’s War Widows Day pin carries the familiar golden wattle and the year it was made. For 2026, the pin has a special design to mark the Guild’s 80th anniversary. Using a wattle slightly different this year and marked “War Widows Day 2026” as a special edition for this year.
Only 250 pins have been made, so we encourage you to order early.
Three ways to take part this War Widows Day
1. Wear the pin. Order the 2026 War Widows Day pin from our shop. Every purchase supports our services for war widows.
2. Add a story to the War Widows Honour Roll. The War Widows Honour Roll is a living record. Add the name and story of a war widow in your life so her legacy is preserved for future generations. Every story becomes part of “80 years of stories”.
3. Join us at the Sydney service on Monday 26 October. This year the service is held a week after War Widows Day. We gather at the Cenotaph, Martin Place, at 10:30 am. To register, call (02) 9867 6577 or email guild@fov.org.au.
Honour their sacrifice. Share their story.
