Service family tradition: Baby Theodore's first Anzac Day dawn service in Tauranga

Four-month-old Theodore Ridgway - held by his mum Morgan Ridgway - wore his grandfather Brian Ridgway's medals to the Tauranga RSA dawn service. Photo/George Novak

Four-month-old Theodore Ridgway wore his grandfather's medals pinned to his cosy sleep suit at Tauranga RSA's dawn service this morning.

His Auckland parents, Morgan and Jason Ridgway, were giving their son his first taste of a cherished tradition for a family with a long history of military service.

Jason said he served in the New Zealand Air Force, and both sets of his son's grandparents also served in branches of the military.

The pair of medals Theodore wore belonged to Jason's father Brian Ridgway, who died nearly four years ago.

The set included a Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, which Gail Ridgway - a navy servicewoman - said with a laugh that her husband used to call his "undetected crime medal".

Jason said he and his wife alternated between their two sets of parents each year to commemorate Anzac Day.