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Dad, son in step
By Capt Michael Brooke
Edition 1169, June 28, 2007 |
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Family reunion: Tpr Tom Evans and his Dad, Cpl Ray Evans, catch up at Ali Air Base in Tallil after Tom arrived in a
C-130.
Photo by Capt Michael Brooke
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CPL Ray Evans always knew his son would follow in his footsteps and join the Army.
But he never imagined that his son, Tom, would follow in his footsteps all the way to Iraq.
Cpl Evans, 42, and Tpr Evans, 20, are comrades in arms serving with Overwatch Battle Group (West) 3 in southern Iraq.
“I guess it’s a classic case of like father, like son,” Cpl Evans said. “I can’t begin to describe how proud I am of my son.”
He greeted his son when he stepped off a RAAF C-130 at Ali Air Base in Tallil on June 5.
The two smiled and shook hands, sharing a golden moment that few others will ever fully appreciate.
The Darwin-based soldiers are believed to be the first father and son duo to deploy on Operation Catalyst.
Tpr Evans, an ASLAV driver with Combat Team Sabre, is happy that his first deployment is with his father. “My dad has always been an inspiration, which probably explains why I am in Iraq with the ADF,” he said.
Cpl Evans said his son was always destined to join the Army.
“When Tom was young and I was a recruit instructor at Kapooka, I used to practise my lesson plans on him by giving him orders and marching him around the backyard,” he said.
He said while Iraq was sometimes a dangerous place, he was comfortable in the knowledge that all members of the Battle Group were well trained and equipped.
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