He may have served in Iraq, but Mooroopna's Brandon James claims he's no hero
When Brandon James pauses on Anzac Day, he will be remembering his heroes.
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Australian and New Zealand men and women who served in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations.
The sacrifices they made — and suffering they endured — to make our nation what it is today.
But ask him if he should be counted among those heroes, and he’ll tell you a flat-out ‘no’.
The 24-year-old Mooroopna local may have served four years active duty as a private in the Australian Army — six months deployed to Iraq — facing dangers most of us could not imagine, and which he will never fully share.
But according to Brandon, he is no hero.
“I don’t like when people call me that,” he said.
“Other people do plenty of other things that deserve more recognition than someone joining the Army and being deployed.
“I would say many other veterans would struggle to see what they've done as heroic.
“I am proud of what I’ve done, but it was just a chapter in my life.”
That chapter began in 2014 when Brandon, then a fresh-faced 18-year-old, joined the Army straight out of Year 12.
Asked why he joined, his answer is quick and simple: “Because I felt it was something I needed to do”.
His service kicked off with three months of basic training, followed by three months of employment training.
Physically challenging and mentally demanding, the basic training was a gruelling process aimed at producing elite, disciplined soldiers.
Brandon was initially one of 35 recruits in his platoon, but that number was whittled down to almost half its size by the time basic training was completed.
“The initial three-month period was the most challenging because I was so fresh and I didn't have a standard to base it off,” he said.
“So I was pretty shocked when I first got there.
“But after that, I realised this was the standard and it got easier along the way because I learnt how to play the game and got used to expectations.
“I don't believe it was overly harsh — the minimum standard is there for a reason.”
Training completed, Brandon was posted to his designated unit — the 8th/9th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment in Brisbane.
And a year and a half after joining, he was deployed to Iraq — just 19 years old.
“I hoped I would be sent overseas, because it was something I had prepared for in my mind. And I did expect it,” he said.
“Every time our unit was reshuffled, I hoped I’d end up in one of the companies that was deploying.
“I was lucky enough to make it to Delta Company, which was deploying to Iraq.”
Stepping off the plane onto Iraqi sands, Brandon was immediately swept into his new role as a member of a “force protection element”, providing security to Australian Army mentors who were training the Iraqi army.
The unit travelled to various locations where mentors taught Iraqi soldiers a range of skills, from weapons handling to low-level tactics.
All in an aim to equip and empower the Iraqi army to fight ISIL.
“I could see a positive purpose in what I was doing. And I could definitely see the impact the mentors I was protecting were having,” he said.
“At the start the Iraqi army’s knowledge was on the lower side. The goal was to leave them at a standard where they could use official tactics.
“I knew we were working to create an efficient Iraqi army that could fight independently without much intervention from other nations.”
It was worthwhile, but dangerous work.
Every time Brandon and his team left the safe walls of the compound, they were putting their lives at risk.
“The compound had other nations and other elements, so it was a safe area. But the second we left it, we were vulnerable,” he said.
Despite this daily risk, Brandon is quick to gloss over it, claiming “nothing too dangerous” happened.
“There were attacks on the US and other nations while I was there, but that wasn't really alarming — that was just the life there,” he said.
“Everyone knew what they were getting themselves into.”
More than 11 500 km across the sea, Brandon’s family kept him inspired and motivated.
As did his girlfriend — now wife — Lucy, whom he had been dating for less than a year.
“We were still pretty early in our relationship, but I was fine with Brandon heading to Iraq,” Lucy said.
“He always wanted to go overseas and do something for his country.
“To be honest, I think he worried more about me, making sure he was calling me and keeping in contact. He did well to keep the calm.”
Lucy said her husband, whom she married in December last year, would never publicly share the dangers he had experienced.
“Because he's protecting everyone else who was involved as well,” she said.
“If things involved other people, I like to keep that stuff private,” Brandon added.
Once his six months were up — and he’d experienced a Christmas Day, Australia Day and Anzac Day in Iraq — Brandon returned home.
“There was a level of de-escalation and post deployment. So I went through a series of medical appointments,” he said.
“But personally, I didn't have an issue with anything. My mental health was all good.”
After some time off, Brandon fell back into the day-to-day rhythm of his unit back home in Australia.
Until, two years later in June 2018, he made the decision to discharge from the Army.
“I felt like I'd accomplished everything I needed to accomplish,” he said.
“I wanted to set my roots somewhere and I thought, back home. Because I had a partner and my family back here in Shepparton.”
After working at a local hardware store, Brandon studied community services at TAFE and, eventually, became a youth worker at Wellways.
While it’s a far cry from the relentless pace of the Army, Brandon knows it’s exactly where he needs to be.
“My experiences in the Army made me who I am now. It's influenced where I've gone,” he said.
“When I went to the Army, I wanted to go and do something for my country.
“And going to Wellways, I'm still helping, but in a different way.
“I still want to make a difference but at more of a grassroots level.”
Even though her husband is quick to resist any praise, Lucy said everyone was incredibly proud of Brandon’s service.
“Sometimes we forget — it wasn't that long ago but it feels like a long time ago,” she said.
“It’s only when Anzac Day and Remembrance Day come around that we genuinely look back and reflect.
“That's why these days are good days, because we get designated time to reflect and thank those who have served. When we really should be doing it much more often.”