Sergeant Pamela Dillon is a Sport Education Coordinator with the School of Sport Education NT. Known as ‘Dillon’ in the remote communities she visits in the Barkly Region, she delivers sport education programs to the region’s young people.
Pam has been an Army Reservist for 42 years and credits the skills she’s gained in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) with her civilian career successes.
Pam has served in the Royal Australian Corps of Transport, the Ordnance Corps, 51 FNQR and NORFORCE, a specialist unit of First Nations and non-First Nations soldiers patrolling Australia’s northern coastline for illegal vessels. She also served full-time as a peacekeeper in Rwanda and on HMAS Anzac in Operation REFLEX.
Pam delivers multiple sports carnivals to hundreds of children across the Barkly Region every year. These events provide students with sporting opportunities that would otherwise not be available.
The positive impact of these events cannot be overstated. Students gain new skills and self-confidence and the chance to represent their community, school or district and, for some, the Territory.
‘My favourite part of the job is seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces when they’ve run a race,’ Pam says. ‘It’s all about the kids.’
She’s thrilled seeing students participating and doing well in events she’s delivered with her ADF-gained skills. ‘It’s even more rewarding for kids who may not excel in the classroom.’
Attending Barkly interschool and NT championships can be the first time some students are away from home. Pam sees this experience as a critical stepping-stone for students to gain independence and prepare them for a future that may require them to attend boarding school.
‘These opportunities are a lesson for the kids and the parents,’ she reflects.
Army Driving Testing Officer and Combat First Aid Training are just two of many qualifications Pam has obtained as a Reservist. Using this knowledge, she conducts first aid and water safety sessions for teachers, students and community members when she is ‘off the clock’. Through the sessions, children who are known to swim in anything that holds water, from wheelbarrows to wheelie bins, now have the skills to enjoy being in and around water safely.
Pam also teaches colleagues to change tyres, four-wheel driving methods and ways to travel safely in remote areas. She warmly recalls a time she stopped on the Stuart Highway to assist a family whose bogged car had both a flat tyre and battery. Using her reservist skills, she got the family back on their way.
Visit School of Sport Education NT to learn more about what Pam and her colleagues are achieving in the Barkly region.
*This article was originally published on the Department of Veterans' Affairs' News page, 11 January 2024.