Navy People: Port Girl Heads Home

19 April 2010

Port Lincoln’s Kirby Mann, 24, will be docking in Adelaide this weekend and it’ll be the nearest she’s been to her dad Kevin for quite a while.

She and her 170 shipmates aboard HMAS Arunta will be alongside from 22-27 April after visiting New Zealand and heading for their own home-port near Perth.

The former Wanilla Netball player joined the Navy in 2005 and has clocked up a few kilometres since then.

“First stop was Melbourne,” said Kirby. “Everyone below the rank of officer does their basic training at HMAS Cerberus, a shore establishment nearby. Then I was posted to Darwin for two years, and then to Rockingham in WA near Perth.

“Since then I’ve basically been afloat, first on HMAS Anzac and now on HMAS Arunta.

“I’ve specialised as a writer, which is what the Navy calls an admin clerk. On board Arunta I’m the Captain’s secretary and I also manage pay, finance and personnel admin for the whole crew. There is a lot of social interaction!

“Now I have one Certificate 3 in business and another in government — and I’ve been promoted to Leading Seaman.

“Before this trip I’d deployed to a lot of south-east Asia — Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Guam, Penang — plus Hawaii and all around Australia, but this trip to New Zealand was a first.

“Soon I’ll be posted back to Cerberus in a finance position where I’ll work to gain more qualifications that are recognised outside of Defence.

“But it’s always great to come back to Adelaide and catch up with family and friends.”

There will certainly a big family turn-out. Grandma Veronica Murchison will be there along with Kirby’s brother Ryan, sister Nicole and brother-in-law Kyran, plus their young baby Arnie. And that’s not counting her friends.

Meanwhile Dad Kevin will be in Port Lincoln looking after his other two grandchildren on the farm, but he’s not too worried.

“Next week I’ll be driving Kirby from WA to her new job in Melbourne, so there’ll be plenty of time for a yarn,” Kevin said.