Vic Simon was born in Taree on the north coast of New South Wales and was raised in Forster and later Sydney. His father and uncle both served in the armed forces and this motivated Vic to enlist for military service. Vic served in Vietnam and fought in the Battle of Long Tan. His stories of service are marked by the loss of friends who were killed during the war, like his good mate Paul Large, who Vic honours every year by laying a poppy in memory of him. Vic is still good mates with those who survived the war and he enjoys seeing them at reunions.

This interview took place on 21 March 2014 in Sydney and was conducted by Professor Mick Dodson and Dr Allison Cadzow with Craig Greene as part of the Australian Research Council-funded research project Serving our Country: a history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the defence of Australia.

The interview recording above is made available to be viewed here by permission of the interviewee(s), Victor Simon. The recording may not be copied, reproduced or communicated in whole or in part without the prior permission of the interviewee(s). Requests for permission for use of this material should be made to the Serving our Country research project: our contact details.

• Return to Vic Simon’s participant page.