By Mikayla van Loon
Tuesday 31 August marked the end of the two decade long involvement of Australian troops in Afghanistan and the Mount Evelyn RSL couldn’t let such a momentous day slip by without recognition.
RSL president Matthew Crymble and local Afghanistan veteran Shane Bear visited the Mount Evelyn cenotaph to lay a wreath in honour of all Australian men and women who served in Afghanistan over the last 20 years.
“I think it’s very important that we acknowledge all of our veterans and in particular, in recent days what’s happening in Afghanistan the withdrawal and all the rest of it,” Mr Crymble said.
“I appreciate a lot of our Afghan veterans may be feeling sad about that and concerned, and Mount Evelyn RSL, myself included, just wanted to acknowledge our Afghan veterans, and let them know that we support them and we’re very proud of them.”
Mr Bear served in the Australian Defence Force for five years in total, completing one tour in Afghanistan in 2012 with the 8/9 RAR Infantry Battalion.
For Mr Bear, a day like 31 August allowed him to reflect on his time serving in the army and on all the people who continue to suffer from the trauma of war.
“I’m a long time removed from it. I can separate myself a bit and I was lucky no one that I was there with, we lost or had any really bad injuries but I know so many people there that did,” he said.
“So I think it’s important to always remember and never forget what people have done in the past but also what we’re doing now as well.
“It’s not just what happened over there, people come back physically healthy but they don’t necessarily come back in a good mental state and it still affects them after that so it’s important to remember and support them and do everything we can.”
Watching the country return to such turmoil now that Australian and American troops have pulled out of Afghanistan, Mr Bear said is difficult but he needs to focus on what he was able to achieve during his tour.
“There’s so much going on over there. You don’t know anything except for what we see but for me I just try to focus on my time there and what I did.
“I’m happy and I’m proud of what I did and what the people I was there with did when we went over there and obviously they’re going through a lot now but it’s disappointing probably to say the least.”
Leaving Afghanistan in a similar fashion to Australia’s Vietnam veterans, Mount Evelyn RSL is conscious of not letting history repeat itself and has put a call out to the general public to welcome back our defence personnel with open arms.
“I think the Vietnam veterans were trailblazers in that sense, they didn’t have the support,” Mr Crymble said.
“Our younger veterans now have the support of the Vietnam veterans, because they don’t want them to experience the same ill feelings that they received after returning from Vietnam. So I think the support will be better and I can only hope it is.”
Having returned from his tour almost 10 years ago, Mr Bear is confident that his fellow veterans and service members will be given the support they need.
“I can only speak from my experience, me personally, it’s been really good, I’ve been really supported.
“Anyone who has ever asked me about it is really thankful and always asking questions and interested in supporting me so I think for me personally the thanks has been there and the support has been there.”
Almost 39,000 Australian military service personnel served in Afghanistan, 41 of those men and women didn’t make it home to their families and many more have been left with physical and mental scars.
Mr Bear was one of the lucky ones, he made it home and has been able to start a family with his partner and build a new life for himself.
As Australia’s troops return to home soil, many of whom may return to the local area, Mount Evelyn RSL is ready and waiting to help anyone who may need it.
“We want to throw our support behind efforts to assist veterans of the war in Afghanistan and their families at this time and if the Mount Evelyn RSL can be of assistance please contact us, we are there for you,” Mr Crymble said.
The RSL upholds a legacy of supporting returned soldiers and has access to an array of services to help anyone who might be struggling. There are also a number of services including Beyond Blue, Lifeline and Open Arms.
