by Nicholas Duck

Warragul and Drouin Gazette journalist Keith Anderson was getting used to writing stories when he began his cadetship in the 1960s. At age 20 he was soon thrust into the middle of a very big one after being conscripted to serve in the Vietnam War.

Keith was born and bred in Drouin and is fiercely proud of that fact, as anyone who has seen him at a Drouin Football Club match can attest to.
An intrepid and keen student of journalism, he had just begun a role at the Gazette before learning he had been selected for service through a ballot - a prospect he had mixed feelings on.
"The thing that probably annoyed us most at the time was we were 20 when we had to register and the voting age wasn't until 21," he says.
"One of the things I remember at work is I got a phone call from my mother to say I've got a letter from the army. I went home and opened up the letter and it said 'dear Mr Anderson, we'd like to advise you you have been successful in your national service ballot.' My idea of being successful and the army's idea of being successful were dead set opposite."
The son of a World War II veteran, Keith had spent much of his childhood in and around RSLs, and as such the idea of service wasn't an entirely foreign one to him.
For him, it was a case of getting on with the job. Keith was simply looking to contribute to the army as best he could - after successfully deferring his service for two years to finish his cadetship.
As with many of his fellow compatriots Keith was shipped off to Puckapunyal, which he says "has got to be about the coldest place in Australia in winter."
Early wake calls and tough drills became the daily routine for recruits. For Keith, however, he knew it was all part and parcel of being a small piece of something larger.
Eventually, after his training Keith was fast tracked to join a battalion due to them needing more numbers as soon as possible.
To select which recruits would be sent straight into the fray a familiar process was used - another ballot.
Depending on how you look at it Keith is either one of the luckiest men around or one of the unluckiest.
Given what job he ended up doing it's not tough to guess which one he believes.
"The last thing I wanted to do was be in the infantry and that's where I ended up," he says with a laugh.
Keith was off to Vietnam to join the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (2RAR).
While he had travelled overseas before, Keith says leaving his home town was something of a rarity.
"I was a country boy, trips to Melbourne weren't very regular, only a couple of times a year to catch up with relatives," he elaborates.
"My first sight of Vietnam was through an aeroplane window and I was fortunate enough to travel to Vietnam via plane on both cases, not by boat. My first sight of Vietnam was flying over the Mekong River Delta and I'd never seen anything like it. It seemed to take us ages to even fly over the delta, it was that big."
A unique aspect of the group Keith joined was it was an ANZAC battalion, meaning he was teaming up with New Zealand soldiers as well as Australians.
"A lot of people in Australia never realised New Zealanders were there," he recalls.
"Something I'll say about the Kiwis is I'm glad they were on our side and not on the other side. They were tough soldiers."
As an infantryman, Keith set about doing his roles, which seemed to change on an hourly basis. As he puts it, "I don't think there was any such thing as a typical day."
"You got your instructions for the day each morning and they could alter. You might go on an operation that's going to take two to three weeks and you're going to go from A to B via C, D E and F.
"But then intelligence gathering, etcetera, might provide the unit with other information that you've got to change direction or something like that."
When he first joined, Keith had never so much as fired a gun. By the time he was into his service, he felt prepared even when contact with the enemy occurred.
"You were trained for it. You were well trained for it," he says.
Keith tells a few stories that stand out in his memory. One was the time he and his battalion were to scale a nearby mountain in a day, a goal that was going to be a tough ask in the best of conditions.
What they got was the exact opposite, a heavy deluge forcing them to camp for the night partway through.
"It just rained so hard, the water came off rocks like cascades. It was probably one of longest nights of my life, just getting absolutely soaked. Every bit of gear you had got soaked and of course water and your rifles aren't a good mix."
Another moment that sticks out in Keith's mind is one that shows just how small the world can be sometimes.
One day he was being picked up by a helicopter only to look up and be greeted by a familiar face - Warragul local Steven Milsted, who Keith recognised from back home.
"He certainly wasn't expecting me and I wasn't expecting him."
Milsted unfortunately died in a training accident some years later.
When asked whether he has a sense of pride in his service, Keith pauses. "Pride? I don't know if that's the right word. I think it comes down to your appreciation of the people you were with and all those who have gone before you in similar or even worse circumstances."
"I've got a hell of a lot better appreciation for any ex-serviceperson and current serving people. We don't show it greatly in Australia like other places like America."
After his return home Keith continued to catch up with the men he served with regularly until 2022, which is something he does take pride in.
Keith stayed away from RSL for decades following his service, largely due to their refusal to recognise Vietnam veterans as full members. He has since returned to the fold and would like to see more people embraced into the fold, both within the RSL and out of it, including police officers and first responders.
"I think if you see a bloke in uniform or wearing medals just shake his hand. Say thanks."