What to do when your parents are being really serious-face painting with 'Cheeky" the clown. Photo by Phil Barling.

Next of kin were remarkably "in the know" when it came to where their deployed loved ones were in The Gulf, a recent activity in Sydney revealed.

Recently Defence Community Organisation North held an information afternoon tea in the mess at HMAS Waterhen.

Invited were parents, partners and children of Defence personnel deployed overseas.

Forty-one adults and 17 children attended.

While the children were being entertained by Cheeky the Clown, or having a face painted in one area, it was more serious stuff for the adults.

Speakers talked of the support being given to those overseas by their families at home.
They thanked wives, partners and parents for that support.

After the formal agenda concluded DCO's LCDR Matt McCormack and the new Chief of the Combat Support Group, CDRE Boyd Robinson went amongst the families.

"I talked with a group whose loved-ones are serving in HMAS Melbourne," CDRE Robinson said.
"We had a map of The Gulf spread out on a table.

"The family members were able to identify places where the ship was serving and the ports where she was taking leave.

"They knew what was going on...not the secret stuff, however," he suggested.

CDRE Robinson said he had gone primed to answer complaints about lack of telephone communication between deployed personnel and their families, a matter hotly raised at a previous afternoon tea.

"The matter was not raised," he said.

"One wife expressed concern that she, and other family members experienced an anxious period when they heard a RAN officer was on a US helicopter which had gone over the side.

"She would have liked to have known the person's name to make sure it was not her husband."

CDRE Robinson said it was a predicament but had advised the woman that in the future, in the event of another incident, she could call Defence's 24-hour National Welfare Co-ordination Centre.

LCDR McCormack, who provided The Gulf map, said he had discussed port visits with the Melbourne families.

In the week that followed the Waterhen gathering, DCO/Tasmania carried out three similar afternoon-teas in its state.

By Graham Davis