Michael Gillespie (1/65) Rob Youl (2/65) & Neil Leckie (3/68)
Michael Joseph Gillespie was born on 17 June 1945 in Brisbane, Qld, and attended Norman Park Convent
School from 1951 to 1955 and Villanova College from 1956 to 1961. At Villanova he was a School Prefect
and in the Cadet Corps. He played 1st XV Rugby at school and was interested in all sports. He was graded
‘better than most’ by his Headmaster. Michael was granted a Scholarship to RMC in 1962. He was attested at RMC on 24 Jan 1963 as Staff Cadet 2196. He was warned at the end of his second term that his exam results were unsatisfactory. At the end of 1963 he had failed in all five academic and one military subjects. He was Discharged 25 Feb 1964.

Michael (above) was subsequently called up for National Service, and being a Queenslander, commenced at 1 RTB Kapooka on 2nd July 1965. On 16th July he commenced training at OTU Scheyville with the first class, Class 1/65. Col. Geddes required that each Platoon come up with a song based on either the Battalion slow march, Never Never, Row the boat ashore, or the quick march Gundagai. Each group then had to present their song to the assembled Staff and Cadets in the Cadets Mess. The majority of songs were described as ‘absolute rubbish’. Mick and Colin Clarke collaborated on their version and with their
crew hit the nail on the head with their effort. Col. Geddes was in stitches, along with the rest of the assembly, because the lyrics described so accurately what each of the Cadets thought of the training at OTU. The song gave a little bit of levity to what was considered at the time a deadly serious endeavour.
Mick wrote a song of which he was very proud. There is some suggestion that the song was a modification of an RMC Marching song, but RMC has no record of such a song. Cam Smith (2/65) advised that Mick had written a second song, based on the Elvis Presley song from his film GI Blues: Didja’
Ever. On return from an exercise or range practice Mick would call out “Didja’ Ever” and the rest of the bus would join in. “Didja’ Ever have one of them days, boys?” Mick’s classmate Dave Sabben came up with the full words for the song. Mick graduated on 18th December, Graduate Number 37, and was posted to 2 RAR. On 6 June 1966 he commenced his tour of duty in South Vietnam with 6 RAR. On 9 January 1967 he was from C Coy 6 RAR with Malaria. He returned to Australia. Mick took up parachuting and on 23 March 1967 near Gundagai, while returning from a jump, he was killed in a car accident. Sadly, also after returning from South Vietnam, Michael’s brother Brian, a December 1967 OCS Portsea Graduate, was killed in a car accident near Proserpine, south of Townsville, on 25 June 1970. Brian served in 6 RAR on its
second tour.
Michael Gillespie, Class 1/65, co-author of The OTU Song. RIP,
Mick!

Andrew Keith Sutherland was born in Croydon, UK on 11 March 1945. He emigrated to Australia and completed his secondary education at Haileybury College in Melbourne and went on to The Melbourne University. He had registered for National Service and his birthdate was drawn out in the first National Service Ballot. He deferred his National Service and graduated as a Bachelor of Laws in 1967. He gained employment as a Trainee Solicitor with Evans Guss and Co.

On 24 April 1969, he commenced his National Service as 3796158 with the second intake of that year. Initially he was posted to the 2nd Recruit Training Battalion at Puckapunyal as a Recruit where, after a couple of weeks and some challenging assessment trials, he was selected for officer training and commenced that with Class 2/69 on 9 May at the Officer Training Unit, at Scheyville (north-west of Sydney). He was allocated to Corporal Paul Jones’ 8 Section in Sgt Peter Busby’s 4 Platoon, in B Company in Hut B3, the hut behind King’s Row. In his Senior Term, Andrew was the Section Commander for 8 Section in Sergeant Tim Overall’s 4 Platoon. His ‘Son’ was Cadet Brian McCarthy. In the re-organisation into 4 companies, 8 Section moved to 3 Platoon still under Sergeant Overall.

After Six months rigorous training, Andrew graduated with his class as a Probationary 2nd Lieutenant on 3 October 1969. Thus, he qualified as an Infantry Platoon Commander who, with further training, would have been ready to lead soldiers in Vietnam.

Recognizing his civilian qualification, the Army then allocated Andrew to the Legal Corps and posted him to Headquarters Southern Command (at Victoria Barracks, Melbourne) as a Legal Officer, with the rank of
Temporary Captain from 4 October 1969. His Army duties there most likely included Courts Martial administration, and mountains of paperwork such as providing legal advice on wills and contracts. At some time during his service Andrew was also an Acting Major. Andrew completed his full-time National Service obligation on 22 April 1971. For his service, Andrew was awarded the Australian Defence Medal and the Anniversary of National Service Medal.

OTU class 2/69 was remarkable in its cohesion. This led to many reunions around Australia and overseas travel with partners.

Robin Hunt said during Andrew’s funeral: ‘I was in the OTU class immediately behind Andrew’s and therefore I was a “Junior” when he was a “Senior”. This gave him the opportunity to cause me, and my peers, grief big time! Andrew never did that. He had a reputation of being fair, courteous, and thoroughly decent and that’s how we knew him through the rest of his life.’

Peter Don, a classmate of Andrew’s at Scheyville, described Andrew as “the personification of a real Officer and Gentleman who not only demonstrated his own leadership abilities at Scheyville and but was inspirational for his classmates during the course and in later years”.

Andrew was married twice. In his first marriage he was the father of two children, Catherine and James. Later Andrew married Kathie and became a deary loved step-father of Nicholas Robb and his family Nicole, Harry, Hamish and Isabelle. Andrew died peacefully at home, aged 80 years, after a long illness, on 7 May 2025. His funeral service was held on 18 May 2025. (With Robin Hunt, 3/69)

George Giummarra, 1/70