I joined the Army in early 2009 fulfilling a lifelong dream of being an Infantry Soldier. I was posted to 6RAR in Brisbane and deployed on Mentoring Task Force 1 to Afghanistan in 2010. Unfortunately, I suffered some orthopedic injuries during my deployment requiring several surgeries and eventually a medical discharge in 2010. I discharged in 2014 and moved back into the civilian world. I had struggled to find meaningful connections in the civilian space especially in working environments, I missed the camaraderie and mate-ship that came with being a member of the Australian Defence Force. In 2021 Ash contacted me about wanting to train MMA somewhere on the Sunshine Coast. I invited Ash to the gym that I had been training at on and off for 5 years. Both Ash and I found a supportive community within the MMA space free of judgement where we could train at our own pace and have a good laugh with like-minded individuals. It is this experience that we wish to share with other Veterans, to get out of the house get moving interact with each other and have a good laugh like the Battalion days but without the drill or non techs.

As a combat veteran I found myself struggling post service in many ways, I struggled to connect with anyone in the civilian world, I felt alone and with poor mental health I lost confidence in myself and felt like I was a shadow of the man I once was. A Veteran collegue of mine dragged me to a Mixed Martial Arts class. After my first class I felt so great I had to come back. After a few months I had found a sanctuary, I felt comfortable and safe in. The training made me feel like I was capable and confident again, the people there were so great and understanding that if I opened up after class telling stories or jokes with that desensitized personalities us veterans tend to have, no one judged. After 6 months I was a new person. After getting these amazing results. My Veteran collegue and I got together with 2 MMA industry professionals from the gym and came up with the Idea of the Program Veterans MMA. The program provides a community and teaches MMA to Veterans in an alternative way to ease the symptoms of mental illness. Since starting the program, we have had such positive feed back from our veteran members and it has been so rewarding.

We set out with the idea of creating an environment for veterans where they can feel a sense of community, and achieve mental and physical benefits through the training of Martial Arts. I have great admiration for the veterans I have met attending our program, their minds are disciplined and focused and their depth of life experience is felt in the way they conduct themselves. I feel privileged to not only support these men and women but also learn from them. I have been pleased to hear from the veterans just how positively our program has impacted them, it has given me a great sense of fulfillment in my days to help provide this good for the veterans.

I felt honoured when I was invited by some of our veterans to put together the technical content and structure for our veterans MMA programme. I initially enjoyed coming to the sessions for the laughs, our post session stories would regularly turn out to be some of the most hilarious or entertaining anecdotes I’ve ever heard. The more sessions we do, the more I’ve begun to learn about the experience and character of our Veterans, And come to understand that the our cause is raw, genuine and regularly misunderstood.

It’s gives me a deep sense of meaning that I can put the knowledge and experience that I’ve gained from studying Martial Arts for decades towards something that will give back to the real warriors in our culture. Our veterans have reported positive changes in their lives since getting involved in our sessions. I’m feel ambitious about the results of our program and motivated about the impact Veterans MMA could have with the right support.

I am a veteran who served 12 years in the Army, as a Combat Engineer. Transitioning from the military is a difficult process to navigate. Add physical and mental injuries, isolation, and the other social issues there is little wonder that we are seeing increasing numbers of disadvantaged veterans in the community. This must be addressed, and I feel that programs like Veterans MMA go a long way to assist veterans in achieving overall wellness, post service.

The Global Wellness Institute defines wellness as the active pursuit of activities, choices, and lifestyles that lead to a state of holistic health. This means that overall wellness is about more than just physical health. It’s about understanding your mental, emotional, social, and environmental needs to overcome disease and illness both at present and in the future.

I have experience and qualifications in mental health, rehabilitation and community development and am currently studying a Bachelor of Social Work and the University of Sunshine Coast. I have been invited to join the team as a wellness advisor and I am excited to be able to assist other veteran in achieving their goals within the program and empowering them to achieve a better life outside of Defence.

I have been surrounded by the Veteran community for most of my life. My father served in the British Navy, my mother Served in the Australian Army and my grandfather was an Irish Ranger. When my partner Ash Pendergast told me about the idea of creating Veterans MMA, I was excited and have had the Honor to be involved in the charity from the beginning.

I’m a lifelong martial artist with a with an extensive military career spanning two defence forces. I have served with the Royal Netherlands Marine Corps and the Australian Army. As a combat veteran, I understand the difficulties many veterans face post service- having tackled them myself as well. Not every post service community program is for everyone, nor should it be. Which is why I love this project, it is not politically correct or makes unachievable claims. Which is exactly why it works.