Aussie Army Captain Awarded For Cambodian Work

After more than 25 years of volunteer work to improve mental health in Cambodia, Captain Milê Glamcevski received a knighthood. 

He was bestowed the Royal Order of Sahametrei (Grand Cross), a chivalric order, for rendering distinguished services to the Cambodian King and people. 

Captain Glamcevski said it will probably be the highest award he would ever receive.

“It may be an individual award but it wouldn’t have happened without a group effort,” Captain Glamcevski said.

As a fresh university graduate 30 years ago, Captain Glamcevski took up a job lecturing at Cambodia University.

In 1996, the university still had no computers, so Latrobe and Monash University donated a couple and Captain Glamcevski collected them.

“When I got to Melbourne airport to depart, I was informed my luggage was over the limit,” he said.

“I threw out all my personal gear and arrived in Cambodia with just the clothes on my back and the computers.”

Captain Glamcevski now divides his time between Cambodia and Australia where he works as Operations Officer for 2nd Force Support Battalion’s 6th Logistics Support Company and as the Victoria and Western Australian general manager for onPsych.

Since becoming a reservist 10 years ago, Captain Glamcevski said Army also supported his other commitments.

“I have been in operations officer positions where the units restructured my role to allow me to be effective to them and my civilian duties,” he said.

“One unit gave me an operations sergeant to complete the day-to-day tasks, as I needed to be overseas two weeks each month.

“I would fly in Tuesday morning, work at the unit till Sunday, completing reserve weekend tasks, and then depart overseas again.”

Captain Glamcevski has post-graduate qualifications in mental health, medicine and education, and has provided mental-health support to schools in Australia, Malaysia, Turkey, Cambodia, Nauru and East Timor. AUSTRALIAN DEPT DEFENCE