Looking forward to the Solomons

18 September 2009

For Private Rachel Kirk, being a soldier is something she has wanted to do since she was a child,
and it is something she believes she has been well prepared for thanks to a Dad who was "tougher on me as a kid than the NCOs [Non Commissioned Officers] were during basic training."

Pte Rachel Kirk Reaction Shooting (AW-09-0922-3).

A bookbinder in her civilian life, Pte Kirk has been a member of the 2nd Canterbury, Nelson, Marlborough and West Coast Battalion Group (2 Cants) for a year and half and, after completing all her Recruit Training, is looking forward to the opportunity to deploy to the Solomon Islands as a Driver in a Rifle Section.

Before attending her Recruit Training in Waiouru last November she joined a Gym to build up her fitness, as she says she wasn't "terribly strong or athletic," and it "helped to have someone to encourage and push me." As a result of completing her eight weeks of Recruit Training she now says that her "confidence, physical fitness and public speaking," have all improved and that the friends she made during the course "I will have for life."

Juggling her Civilian and Military Commitments have not been a problem, as she says that the most important thing for Army Reserve soldiers to to maintain good communication and honesty with their employer and their friends and family. She also says that due to the Recession, work in her civilian job had begun to slow down and it was therefore the "perfect time to spend a couple of months away to complete basic training." She has also been able to pick up some extra part-time work with the Army as the Registration Clerk for her Battalion's 150th anniversary celebrations.

Of her impending four month deployment to the Solomon Islands she says that "it hasn't been a problem," getting leave from her employer and that her family is happy for her to go as  "they can always write or email."In preparation for her deployment Pte Kirk has recently completed four build-up training weekends, spaced over a period of about three months, to polish and hone her soldiering skills before going on to attend five weeks of full-time Pre-Deployment Training at Burnham Military Camp. This training has included range shooting, communications and first aid skills as well as conducting 'village visits' around the Burnham Camp housing area, where she and other soon to deploy soldiers have had to deal with a variety of scenarios acted out by fellow soldiers from her unit who have previously served in the Solomon Islands or East Timor.

She is now going on to attend a driving course for the Pinzgauer 6 x 6 vehicle that will be used for patrols in-country, before starting the PDT proper, which she expects to be "physically and mentally challenging." As for the deployment itself, she says she is "looking forward to it," especially the opportunity to put her training into practice.