It takes a decent knock to take down Robert Brown, but the indescribable memories of wartime Vietnam have left a lasting pain that most cannot relate to.
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As a former returned serviceman, Mr Brown can empathise with the trauma suffered by fellow soldiers and is always keen to ensure the Anzac message is shared.
Mr Brown's dedication to the Cobram-Barooga RSL Sub-branch and other veteran support groups has earned him an Order of Australia Medal as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours.
“I'm very humbled; I still can't believe it,” the emotional grandfather of seven said.
“It breaks me down because there are others that are better than me. If it wasn't for my wife, I don't think I'd be here today.”
The former plumber moved to Cobram in 1991, after spending time as a teacher in Box Hill.
His close connection to the army is through his father, who was in Darwin when the Japanese bombed the city in 1942, while his grandfather also served in France during World War I.
In 1965, Mr Brown, then 20 years old, was conscripted to serve in Vietnam; he served there in 1967 and 1968.
Mr Brown said he still had suspicions about how he was conscripted in 1965.
The method for selecting young men for national service was by birth dates: numbered marbles representing birth dates were chosen randomly from a barrel.
Mr Brown said his date was March 10 and his brother's was April 17. Both were drawn and they were the only boys on their street who were chosen.
“I still can't win TattsLotto, and all the other boys missed out,” Mr Brown said.
When the Vietnam War started, Mr Brown said the TV coverage was vague so he didn't feel he would ever serve. But he arrived in South Vietnam on April 19, 1967.
“I was 21, very scared and frightened, not knowing what was going on,” he said.
“Leaving a wife — put yourself in the same picture. My mates and I would tell ourselves we were most likely to get killed at home on the roads than in Vietnam . . . even today I get frightened of loud noises, especially nail guns on building sites and helicopters flying overhead.”
Mr Brown emotionally recalled the effect the Vietnamese children had on him and how they reminded him of family life back home.
The dream of returning to Australia was always on his mind, and the soldiers would often count the days until they could do so.
But on his return, Mr Brown did not receive the welcome he deserved.
“We were not welcomed home,” he said.
“I still get tingles down my spine when helicopters fly overhead. Some people think I'm crazy, but most Vietnam vets feel that way.”
Mr Brown will always show his appreciation for fellow returned serviceman and women — but his feelings toward the politicians that sent him to South East Asia are more akin to contempt.
After living most of his life in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Mr Brown and his wife Jan moved to a dairy farm in Yarroweyah.
In 1999 Mr Brown became the president of the Cobram-Barooga RSL Sub-branch; now into his second stint as president, he has ensured local veterans are well supported.
“Our Vietnam motto is: ‘Remember the dead, and fight like hell for the living'.”
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