Local soldier shares Army experience

BALLARAT soldier, Private Jeremy Janson, enlisted in the Australian Army seven years ago and has since had a wealth of experiences.

Private Janson started his experience as a store person with 8th/7th Battalion, Royal Victoria Regiment after being inspired by his father and brothers to join the army.

“I always wanted to join,” he said. “I followed my father and brothers into service, who were a big influence on my decision.”

He then transferred to the Northen Territory-based 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, which Private Janson said was different to life in Ballarat.

“Moving to Darwin was a huge change,” he said. “I’ve got fond memories of my hometown, but the cold stands out the most. Don’t get much of that in Darwin.”

During this time in the Army, Private Janson was deployed to Afghanistan, working to protect Australian and Coalition forces as they trained local soldiers.

“I was qualified as a protected mobility vehicle driver ahead of deployment, and while in Afghanistan, primarily focused on providing protection to Australian military advisers and driving PMVs,” he said.

“The added complexity of having to conduct maintenance in full body armour provided an interesting challenge in a tough environment.”

From there, Private Janson changed to a part time role with the Army where he was able to get his forklift and heavy rigid machinery licences, and this year he joined multinational Exercise Talisman Sabre in northern Queensland.

Private Janson encouraged anyone considering joining the Army to follow the opportunity.

“I’ve learnt some incredible life lessons and built lifelong relationships with my fellow soldiers,” he said.

“That’s not something I’ve ever experienced in any other job I’ve had.

“The level of professionalism you build is hard to find anywhere else; when the job’s on, the ability to change from one extreme situation to another is something I found really motivating and inspiring.”