SALLYMAN’S
COFFEE OPS
IS NEVER A GRIND
T
OWNSVILLE-based MAJ Nigel
Roden recently deployed to the Middle
East in support of Australian troops.
He was rapt, not just at the opportunity, but that
the long tradition of Sallyman service to the ADF
could be continued even on modern operations.
It happened because, by chance, Chief of Defence
ACM Mark Binskin saw a Sallyman in the fi eld in
support of troops on Ex Talisman Sabre in 2015.
The “Sallyman” has been in the fi eld with
Australian soldiers since the Boer War... and, in the
Middle East, while Aussie troops train their Iraqi
and Afghani counterparts, they are there again.
The senior Townsville philanthropic
representative, Nigel, completed a four
month tour of the Middle East Area
of Operations (MEAO) in March.
During his tour, he went “outside the wire” several
times taking the iconic “Sallyman truck treats”
with him in luggage, a backpack, even on pushbike.
Nigel fi lled the third rotation of the deployment
shared by the Salvation Army’s Sallymen and
the non-denominational Everyman personnel.
After initially being on trial, the deployment
is now offi cially part of the ADF cycle
of deployments in the MEAO.
THE SALLYMAN… Salvation Army offi cer
MAJ Nigel Roden provides support to the
sailors, soldiers and airmen deployed on
Operation HIGHROAD during a visit to
Kabul, Afghanistan
AUGUST 2017 | 51