Veteran Colin Greef still remembers the first time he saw the sea as a young child when his parents took him on a trip to the coast in his United Kingdom homeland.
The vastness and openness of the sea was nothing like Colin had known before, and it had an impact.
Seeing a ship on the waves that day was the moment his dream to join the Navy clicked.
‘I knew it – that’s the life for me.’
Colin left school with no qualifications and told his parents he wanted to join the Royal Navy. His father supported the decision, while his mother was more cautious.
Instead, he spent a year working as an apprentice carpenter before joining at 16. After several years of service, he migrated to Australia and continued his naval career with the Royal Australian Navy, serving a total of 33 years and rising to the rank of Warrant Officer.
Service across the seas
During his service, Colin travelled widely and saw the challenges faced by communities affected by conflict. In 1992 he was posted on a United Nations peacekeeping mission to Cambodia after years of Pol Pot’s regime. The country was devastated, and many children had little to call their own. In the evenings, Colin would play a cheap second-hand guitar and sing with local children – a simple way of connecting, giving them a few moments of normality and joy.
‘The Navy taught me discipline, resilience and the value of helping others,’ he says.
Finding a voice
Music became a constant for Colin. While at sea he learned a few chords from crewmates and fell in love with playing guitar. Later, when he settled into civilian life, music became a way to reconnect with community.
It wasn’t until 2017 that music became a bigger part of his life again. A friend invited him to join a small jam session. Around the same time, a staff member at Soldier On in Canberra suggested veterans might like a guitar group. Colin and a few others went along, and the Canberra Veterans Guitar Group began.
‘They were brilliant. We didn’t have to pack up. We could leave all the equipment there and use it any time we wanted,’ Colin says. Soldier On provided space and encouragement to help lay the foundations, but the group grew from the veterans’ own commitment and energy.
Sharing songs together
The group grew quickly, but when the original building they met in was sold and demolished, they needed a new place to meet. Thanks to the Southern Cross Club in the Canberra suburb of Woden, they now gather between 10 am – 12 pm each Friday.
‘We’ve got around 20 members now, and they never miss a day,’ Colin says. ‘It’s their one day of the week. It’s about playing together, talking and just being with people who understand.’
With the Woden-based group now at capacity, Colin has launched a Queanbeyan-based group that meets every Tuesday (also from 10 am – 12 pm) at the Queanbeyan Veteran & Family Hub.
The groups are open to veterans and first responders, including members of the AFP, firefighters and former Defence personnel. While mostly men, a few women attend regularly. Members play guitars, keyboards and even bagpipes, contributing to singing and jamming sessions.
For some participants, it is more than music. Many have experienced trauma or post-traumatic stress, and the weekly sessions provide a space where they feel understood.
What support sounds like
The weekly events are free for current and former serving Defence members and their families, whether or not they have played before or have their own instrument.
‘Some of them only know one or two chords. If they don’t have a guitar, I give them one.’
Over the years, he has collected and refurbished more than 400 guitars, giving them to veterans, disadvantaged children and people doing it tough. Many came from locals who wanted their unused instruments to go to someone who would use them.
Colin and volunteers have travelled hundreds of kilometres to deliver guitars by hand. After bushfires on the south coast, for example, they took instruments to children and schools that had lost everything. Others went to drought-affected areas and communities in need.
Despite the effort and cost – petrol, accommodation, meals – Colin continues.
‘I don’t mind. I’ve got nothing else to spend my money on.’
Mateship and music
The Canberra Veterans Guitar Group also brings music to the wider community, performing at retirement villages, nursing homes and local events. A highlight is Veterans Day in Queanbeyan, where members perform at the showgrounds, sharing classic rock and old favourites with the crowd.
Colin’s Canberra and Queanbeyan groups operate independently, but any veterans and first responders connected to Soldier On are welcome to join – and many do.
‘We do it ourselves, but it’s great to have members connected to Soldier On taking part,’ he says.
For Colin, the reward comes from the people themselves.
‘It’s the comradeship. The mateship. Being on the same level. That’s what it’s all about.’
