Veteran's Path to Peace

Tony Kregor and his two brothers, Michael and Robert aka ‘Banjo’, attended St Virgil’s College as boarders during the 1960s. The brothers hailed from the southern Tasmanian settlement of Gordon. Sadly, Robert passed away 1.01.1996 and Michael 23.10.2020.  Tony’s three sons, Stuart, Daniel and Ben also attended the College.

In Tony's Words:

I want to share my life story with my family, friends, the public and especially members of the Armed Services & RSLs. 

This story covers my early life growing up on a farm in Tasmania and the loss of the farm to a major bushfire on the 7 February 1967 which on that day took the lives of 72 people, and more than 1200 homes were burned down. 

Following the loss of the farm, I joined the Australian Regular Army and served in the Vietnam War for 12 months in 1969/70. This war was very unpopular both with the Australian public and the soldiers who were sent to Vietnam.  

In the book, I tell my story of being given the responsibility of communicating with the next of kin of soldiers killed or wounded in action and I provide details and stories of who, how, when and the personal trauma and stress associated with it. It was just soul destroying!

In the book I cover my life after the war on 24 Sept 1970 and the fact that no support was given by the Army and certainly not the government. I tell the story of what I went through, a great deal of stress and trauma which went on for months and, in some cases, years.  I was suffering with PTSD but that was not recognised nor accepted until September 2015 – only 45 years after my return to Australia! 

The Royal Commission into veteran suicides found that 532 soldiers were killed in Vietnam and over 2,000 veterans committed suicide on their return from Vietnam. 

After my discharge from the Army, I went on to be very successful working in the pharmaceutical industry and developed very successful loyalty programs for many businesses. Details are covered in my book together with some very good ideas that would help both current and past veterans to deal with trauma of their war service.  

I am indebted to my editor and publisher, Sydney Pilcer, who has helped me with the writing and worked tirelessly to manage the publishing of my book. 

What follows is the foreward to Tony’s book written by the President of RSL Victoria.

Tony Kregor is like so many Australians of his age and since; motivated by service to Australia yet paying the price for that service decades later.  

His memoir, The Battle After the War, will strike a chord with anyone who has served or been close to someone who has served.  

Tony outlines in detail the circumstances that led to him joining the Army and the experiences of 12 months in the Vietnam War that have never left him. His life story is peppered with the debris of that experience until it eventually comes to the surface.  

Reading about that moment and the process he went through in 'Opening the Box' to those memories is harrowing but also inspiring. It resonated with my own service experience, as it will with countless others.  

The idea that someone can lead a successful personal and business life for decades, yet at any moment can be gripped by the trauma of service decades prior may not be understood by those that have not served.   

However, in my role as President of RSL Victoria it is the kind of experience we see regularly.  It is why the RSL is a crucial pillar of the community: we will be there at the time you need us.  

Tony’s account of how he dealt with that Vietnam reckoning and the associated catharsis from being involved in the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide stands as a beacon of optimism for the reader.   

The Battle After the War is a highly readable and entertaining tale of a life well lived, but it is also a valuable resource for veterans and their families that shows a path through the toughest times.    

Dr Mark Schröffel  

President - RSL Victoria   

Book Order

To place your order for a copy of Tony Kregor’s book, The Battle After the War, contact:   Tony Kregor: tony.kregor@bigpond.com or ph: 0418 174 974.