Our People in the ACT
Leading Aircraftswoman Lynda Ehlers - Canberra mum goes from school tuckshop to serving in the Middle East
LACW Ehlers joined the Royal Australian Airforce seven years ago after deciding to make a career change.
"For a number of years I managed the school canteen at Chisolm and helped run the family business, a local newsagency. When I decided to look for something different the comraderie of the Defence Force really appealed to me. So I joined as a clerk and now I'm here in the Middle East helping to co-ordinate flights and rest leave for 1,400 personnel".
LACW Ehlers said "It's a long way from serving vegemite rolls and milk to schoolchildren, but this is a job that really is contributing to making sure our Defence people get to where they need to be when their colleagues need them there."
"I expected most of the Middle East to be endless sand dunes and rock plateaus, but the reality is it's very westernised and the people are very intelligent. They just want a secure community so they can get on with creating a better life for their children."
LACW Ehlers own children range from 2 years to 26. "When I told them I was being deployed my 18 year old daughter was worried our nightly mother-daughter chats would be put on hold for six months, but we talk almost every day and I send daily email updates to all of them and my husband reads them each night to our 2 and 3 year old boys. I might be thousands of kilometres away but I'm still a big part of their daily lives."
"At the Australian Force Logistic Base I work alongside people from the Army and Navy. We all look forward to emails and letters from home. Just a short note from another mother from school who heard I was over here means so much."
After spending most of her deployment arranging flights for the entire Australian contingent LACW Ehlers is looking forward to seeing a ticket home with her name on it in a few months.