IN A coffee shop the morning after Isa Fest, country music singer Beccy Cole has a coffee with the commanding officer of Mount Isa-based Delta Company, Major Dave Hopgood – a former My Kitchen Rules contestant.
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They have united for the same cause; supporting our struggling soldiers emotionally, physically and financially.
Their meeting on the Sunday is at the urging of the mother of Captain Paul McKay, an Afghanistan veteran and post-traumatic stress disorder sufferer who killed himself on New Year’s Eve, 2013.
Cole was inspired to write the song Broken Soldiers after hearing Captain McKay’s mother Angela speak at the funeral in South Australia.
The country musician wanted to give families of soldiers a voice and decided to donate the funds to the cause Soldier On.
“A lot of people suffering don’t like to talk about it,’’ she said.
“It was something I could do through this song ... I’m just a country singer but I can give it a voice.”
Cole was aware of the great work that Australian soldiers do overseas, having performed the last decade in the Middle East, Egypt and the Solomon Island.
“It’s the most fulfilling experience as an entertainer,” she said.
“It’s not for you, it’s about bringing a piece of home to them.”
Soldier On supports Australian service men and women who have been wounded physically or psychologically in recent conflicts, and Cole is in discussions to become an official ambassador for the cause.
If so, Cole will join the ranks of ambassadors such as former prime minister John Howard, comedian Hamish Blake, and Major Hopgood – who became an ambassador after his 2012 stint on My Kitchen Rules.
“After being in the army for 26 years now, I’ve seen many mates and even brothers who struggle with PTSD and wounds inflicted due to their service,” he said.
“I’ve personally served in Afghanistan, East Timor and was at the horrific Rwanda Massacre, of which many of those I served with came back very different at such a young age.”
Major Hopgood raised funds for Soldier On through his WWI Commemorative Cook Book and was completing a book signing event last December when he met Mrs McKay.
“Sunday came about after Angela McKay spent months orchestrating the meeting of all of us over a coffee,” Major Hopgood said.
He told Cole how much it meant for entertainers to visit solders during overseas operations.
“Music lifts our spirits and brings a little of home to us.”
Major Hopgood hopes local veterans or emergency service personnel and families will contact him if they need support.
“Please contact me on my Facebook page, which I have kept open for this reason; www.facebook.com/DavidHopgoodcooks.”
They can also contact Delta Company, 51 Far North Queensland Regiment on 4740 1200.
