RSL president James Brown on rebuilding the organisation in time for Anzac Day
James Brown walked in to the RSL in the wake of its greatest scandal. Here’s why he believes they still deserve your support
Wentworth Courier
Don't miss out on the headlines from Wentworth Courier. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A framed photographed sits on RSL NSW president James Brown’s desk of a smiling young family that has been torn apart. It’s one of 85 reasons he signed up to head an organisation that was on the brink of collapse.
“That’s how many veteran suicides there were last year,” Mr Brown says.
“One of them was my closest friend in the Army. He killed himself in August.”
When the young Army veteran was elected to the presidency last year the RSL was in chaos.
His first months in the job were dominated by the independent Bergin Inquiry which heard the former president Don Rowe spent $475,000 on a corporate credit card during a six-year period, including $213,000 in cash withdrawals.
It was among a series of examples of wrong doing by the former leadership of the RSL who lined their own pockets at the expense of members.
“It’s been probably the darkest time the RSL has had in our 100 years,” Mr Brown says.
“We’ve still got years of work to go to repair the damage.
“The trust we need to regain is that of the public and they’ve seen a forensic examination of our failures.”
Surrendering is simply not an option for the RSL.
Every day they are called upon by veterans in crisis, those who are unable to navigate the intricacies of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs pension process or desperately need help holding it together in the wake of the horrors they’ve witnessed.
This year is the centenary of the final year of WWI and so the commemorations will focus on the battles of the western front as well as honouring the dwindling number of WWII veterans.
Mr Brown, who is married to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s daughter Daisy, is a former Captain and an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran.
There has been speculation he put his hand up for the presidency in a bid to raise his public profile and one day take over the seat of Wentworth from his father-in-law.
Even if that is the case, he’s chosen a worthy cause that’s close to his heart to champion.
His mates who served in Somalia, Timor, the Solomon Islands and other contemporary conflicts and peace keeping operations are the future of the RSL.
It is because of these younger veterans, the custodians of the Anzac legend, that the RSL needs to push past the scandals of leaders past.
“While all this was going on with the inquiry, in the background we had 40,000 members still organising Anzac services, fundraising for veterans and making sure their welfare was looked after,” Mr Brown says.
“Anzac Day is a really good opportunity to grab a veteran by the hand and thank them.
“But we are looking to support them for the rest of the year as well with things like veteran employment initiatives.”
Delivering welfare for veterans has in many ways never been more complex.
A recent report from the DVA makes it clear that even for physically fit veterans, the transition back into a civilian life is rarely seamless.
The Mental Health and Wellbeing Transition Study found that almost three in four former defence members have met the criteria for a mental disorder at some time in their life, most commonly anxiety and alcoholism.
About 25 per cent of them live with post-traumatic stress disorder and one in five have experienced suicidal ideation and made a plan or attempt to end their own life.
In addition to these challenges, job hunting, creating a budget and even finding rental accommodation can be significant challenges for someone who has been institutionalised while they dedicate their time and energy toward serving the nation.
Mr Brown says moving beyond Anzac Day he hopes the community will embrace opportunities to support their neighbours in the defence force.
“It’s sometimes very easy to tell the story of veterans who are broken. But that’s not the whole story,” Mr Brown says.
“There are lots of other veterans who are leaving the defence force and finding it difficult to navigate the civilian world.
“I know my personal situation was pretty fortunate but it still took me a while after discharging to work out how the civilian job market worked.
“These veterans are people with extraordinary skills and so much to offer.”
The photograph of the smiling family so cruelly hurt by PTSD and suicide isn’t the only memento which adorns Mr Brown’s office.
His grandfather’s bayonet has pride of place as does the framed Australian flag which was draped over the coffin of the last of the Anzacs, Alec Campbell, at his funeral in 2002.
For RSL NSW, the wounds inflicted by the wrongs of past executives are slowly healing.
And surrounded by the physical reminders of the courage of the Anzacs, the sacrifices of those who have gone before him, Mr Brown is leading the charge for change.