Leading Seaman Roneld Baragud remembers Navy crew visiting his island home when he was just a child.
The Regional Indigenous Development Coordinator (RIDC) for HMAS Cairns said it was his first introduction to Navy and something he would never forget.
“They came ashore with guns and took us out on the RHIBs (rigid hull inflatable boats) for a tour. We jumped on the boat, barefoot, and they let us run wild,” Leading Seaman Baragud said.
Leading Seaman Baragud tried to enlist at 17 but his mother wouldn’t let him. The following year there was no stopping him. He saw Navy as a natural fit.
“My family are sea-going people. My great-great-grandfather, great-grandfather and grandfather were fishermen. We grew up around the sea, it was the main way to make money,” he said.
Leading Seaman Baragud is from Yam (Iama) Island in the Torres Strait, 100km northwest of Thursday Island, which is 39km north of Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland.
“Yam Island is four fuel drums – four 20-litre fuel drums – to Thursday Island; about a four-hour trip by boat away,” he said.
He left Yam Island, population 319, in 2018 for experience and to travel the world.
Leading Seaman Baragud has served in HMAS Toowoomba and as a member of the commissioning crew of HMAS Stalwart, in which he sailed for his first overseas deployment to the Middle East.
“And then COVID hit. We were away for six months but couldn’t go ashore. We just stayed on the ship,” he said.
“It was mentally challenging, yeah, that’s for sure.”
He was able to go ashore in Japan, however, when he was part of Stalwart’s crew at the 2022 International Fleet Review.
“There were around 50 ships there; that was a definite highlight of my career so far,” he said.
Leading Seaman Baragud hopes to introduce a Torres Strait influence into the Navy Indigenous team culture and make a positive difference to educate Cairns and the broader Navy about First Nations issues.
Part of his role will be to deconflict activities with Army who are also active in the region.
Leading Seaman Baragud credits his mentor, submariner chef Chief Petty Officer Erol Williams, and fellow RIDCs with helping him navigate his first year in his new role.
