An Cosantóir

38 Despite many tours of duty and all the extended courses that I have done, at home and abroad, I would have to say that another aspect would have to be the difficulty when it comes to leaving family and friends behind as you deploy overseas. I have to say it does not get easier no matter how often you travel, for you or your loved ones, and with that comes the fact that I, as a father of five young children, have missed significant events in their lives. As my career and promotion prospects developed and advanced over the years, I also found that it was also tough at times to leave units and personnel behind that I had built up a close and professional working relationship with. This occurred because of promotion and requested transfers. Any honest individual would admit that it is by working closely with others and having an open mind that you develop and grow, and that those experiences will help shape and mould the person that you will become not only in your career but also in your personal life. To all those that I have served with both at home and abroad, to those with whom I have shared experiences and learned with, and those with whom I have, and will continue to grow with, I would like to say a sincere thank you. What skills or values have you developed from your time in the DF? For me personally loyalty is definitely one of the most developed character traits that I have. I believe that you must first be loyal to yourself, your beliefs, your professionalism and most of all be loyal to those with whom you work. In my career, I have not had to rely on my rank or appointment to obtain loyalty from others, whether superior or subordinates. I have created and developed ways of fostering loyalty in others by ensuring and supporting its growth and by applying a humanistic approach to the job. I always say that none of us were born soldiers; this is a profession or calling that we have each individually heard and answered. With that in mind, we must remember that behind each uniform there is a person, there is a life, there is a human being. I believe in respect, I believe that if you respect others, that this in turn will be repaid back to you. These are some of Mark is photographed here in tChad 2008 on the 97th Inf Bn in front of a C130 Hercules aircraft Mark pictured here in 2014, back in Lebanon serving on the 113th Inf Bn as a Company Sargeant PEOPLE OF THE DEFENCE FORCES

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