Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

My dad was a strong and stubborn man.

He had my eldest half-brother John, before he went away to Vietnam, with his then wife, Allison Who he met during training.

When he returned, he had my other half-brother Rodney and my half-sister, Debbie.

Dad struggled when he returned. Which caused his marriage to Full apart.

There wasn't enough support in place to help those who returned from Vietnam. He struggled with it for the rest of his life.

Dad went on to marry my mom, Adela and had my older siblings Laurel, Michael, Wayne, Roger and then myself, Katherine.

Dad never talked to anyone about his time in the war. Not until the end when he was sick, when he opened up to my mum and myself. My mum said he struggled with night terrors, their entire relationship. He had always been traumatised by the death he caused while in Vietnam. Although he was a strong man and hid his pain from the world, In the end he opened up and explained just how it impacted his life.

The mental health issues that it caused him affected his entire life. My whole life my dad struggled to make friends or hold a relationship. He found it hard to stay in one place or hold a job down too long.  He kept his mental health issues to himself and tried to deal with it alone.  For the last 5 years of his life, he would say he just wanted to die. He knew he was sick for years but refused help and when he finally went to the doctor, he refused treatment for his cancer.

There was not enough support for those who returned from Vietnam.