Our People in WA
Stuart Andrews and Elizabeth Andrews - Safety Bay daughter follows dad to sea
While Safety Bay sailor, Petty Officer Stuart Andrews kept a watch in the Machinery Control Room onboard HMAS Toowoomba, which is currently serving in the Middle East Area of Operations, his daughter graduated from the Royal Australian Navy Recruit School at HMAS Cerberus in Victoria.
Seaman (Star) Elizabeth Andrews graduated with her classmates in a special ceremony attended by her Mum, Teressa and her sister, Bria who flew over to HMAS Cerberus from Safety Bay in Western Australia for the occasion.
Following a similar path to her Dad, Elizabeth has joined as a Marine Technician.
Petty Officer Andrews, who has been a Marine Technician in the Navy for 12 years, was extremely disappointed he couldn’t be there to see his daughter graduate.
“I’m really proud of her and wished I could have been there, but unfortunately Toowoomba is on operation and I’ve got a job to do here,” Petty Officer Andrews said.
Commanding Officer of HMAS Toowoomba, Commander Ivan Ingham, sent a message to Elizabeth on behalf of the Ship’s Company wishing her congratulations, welcoming her to the Navy family and encouraging Elizabeth and her class to be “fearless” in their careers – “fearless” being HMAS Toowoomba’s motto.
Commanding Officer of the RAN Recruit School, Commander Jim Hillock, said that Elizabeth was a high performing recruit, well respected and said that he considers she has great potential to become an outstanding sailor.
Petty Officer Andrews was happy but not surprised to see the message from the Recruit School.
“It was really good to hear how well she has done, but I’m not surprised. Elizabeth is the sort of person that draws the best out in people. She has a good awareness of the positive and negative aspects of the job, particularly as a Marine Technician, including an expectation of long hours and hard work ahead,” Petty Officer Andrews said.
“Being on deployment at sea means that you do miss some really important milestones in your family’s life, so I’m really looking forward to seeing her graduation on DVD,” he said.
While Elizabeth has proceeded onto category training, Petty Officer Andrews is deployed onboard HMAS Toowoomba continuing her patrols as part of Operation SLIPPER, Australia’s contribution to maritime security and counter-terrorism in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman.
Early next month she will commence anti-piracy duties in the Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and waters off the Horn of Africa.