Members of HMAS Watson dug deep this month to raise funds for Legacy by competing in the ADF-wide Battle of the Bases.

CAPTION: Commanding Officer HMAS Watson Commander Tina Brown, Warrant Officer Nigel Jeffers and Petty Officer Jessica Fisher take part in the Legacy lunge challenge held at HMAS Watson. Story by Lieutenant Kiz Welling-Burtenshaw.

The Battle of the Bases involved Navy, Air Force and Army members raising funds for Legacy on behalf of their bases, and Watson had a strong performance, coming third out of about 20 ADF teams.

However, it didn’t end there for HMAS Watson – in support of the Navy People Wellbeing Program, Executive Officer Commander Tina Brown, Command Warrant Officer Nigel Jeffers, and Physical Training Instructor Petty Officer Jessica Fisher completed one lunge for every dollar raised at the completion of the competition.

After a very successful fundraising campaign, with the base raising close to $6000, Commander Brown was concerned about fulfilling her end of the deal.

“6000 lunges between three people, in one go, is torture,” Commander Brown said.

“To lessen our pain slightly, we recruited the support of local school students at Vaucluse Cottage and Out of School Care to get the mission completed.

“Members of the ship’s company also joined us, with Chief Petty Officer Beth Keefe doing 850 lunges on her own! I am extremely proud and appreciative of all members and students who contributed to this worthy cause.”

The support from the schools provided a great way for Watson to continue to maintain an active and positive relationship with the local community and promote awareness about Legacy outside of the Defence environment.

Year 3 student, Sammy, said that it was great to get involved in what has been a difficult year.

“We were all very happy to help – staying active is really important and during lockdown that can be hard. This gave us a really cool reason to do some exercise and support a great cause – especially because my mum and dad are both in the Navy,” Sammy said.

The remainder of this year will include HMAS Watson fundraising for another two charities, Keeping Watch and Sydney Children’s Hospital Foundation, while also engaging with the local community.

Legacy supports more than 43,000 widowers and families from serving and former serving personnel who have died or have been injured. The charity provides essential services including counselling, medical, advocacy and social support.