Respected and praised by Australian diggers, whom they aided in holding off the Japanese troops, the Angels (and their ‘fuzzy wuzzy hair') became famous after soldiers sent home letters, drawings and poems about them, showing their care as they battled through the perfidious, mud-soaked, Owen Stanley ranges.
Saii, a Manari community leader, works in the Port Moresby Office of the Kokoda Track Foundation (KTF). Its chairman, Patrick Lindsay AM, expressed his sadness at the loss of Faole.
"Our thoughts are with Saii and Bokoi and their families", he said. "We send you love. We have lost the last living link with our beloved Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels on the Track."
His thoughts were echoed by serving Australian Army member Sean Seery, who said:
"This man is part of my unit's history. What these men did on the Kokoda Track is in the entry to our unit's HQ [so] I'm lucky enough to be reminded every day of Kokoda and what they achieved."
The Angels escorted and assisted injured Aussie soldiers along the Track in the Kokoda Campaign, and without their care, it is estimated that the 650 lives lost would have been much greater in number. One digger wrote of them:
"They carried stretchers over seemingly impassable barriers, with the patient reasonably comfortable. The care they give to the patient is magnificent. If night finds the stretcher still on the track, they will find a level spot and build a shelter over the patient.
"They will make him as comfortable as possible fetch him water and feed him if food is available, regardless of their own needs. They sleep four each side of the stretcher and if the patient moves or requires any attention during the night, this is given instantly."
They carried in ammunition and supplies, and carried out injured men to field hospitals. Mr Lindsay says that Faole embodied the characteristics the Angels became known for; gentleness, bravery, and dedication.
"When people met Faole when they walked the track, they'd go through Manari village, and he just was one of those characters who stood out.
"He had this calm exterior about him but he also evoked that connection between Australia and PNG.
"He was very gentle and he had a dignity, a wonderful dignity."
