Up Close … with Ray Charles, new military recruit, refrigeration and electrical technician |26 September 2017

‘If you are determined, committed and ambitious you can conquer all obstacles’

He has just followed three months of intensive military training at the Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA) and has been accepted in the Seychelles People’s Defence Forces (SPDF) and out of the 14 new soldiers who successfully completed their training he came out as the best. His name is Ray Charles and he is aged only 24 years old.

Ray Charles aspires to be a marine refrigeration engineer and being accepted as a new recruit in the SPDF is but only the first step on the road for him to accomplish his dream.

Originating from Praslin, more precisely Baie Sainte Anne, Ray did all his primary and secondary studies on his beloved native island before moving to Mahé to follow a course in refrigeration at the Seychelles Institute of Technology (SIT).

Soon after he completed his one-year course, he landed a job at the Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay as a refrigeration technician. He worked there for five long years but with his dream to work as a marine refrigeration engineer never fading.

Spending five years in a job without no clear prospects or advancement, Ray finally made up his mind to join the military and later pursue his dream.

Career opportunities and training

After he had made up his mind Ray said he talked to friends who are in the military and other people close to the SPDF and they were all very supportive and took time to brief him on all the opportunities in different fields the military has to offer.

“It was a great chance that I could not miss and I did not waste any time as I was determined and my mind was made up,” Ray recalls.

Ray started military training in a group of 23 young persons and he soon discovered that it was not child’s play.

“The physical pain was hard to endure and coming straight from civilian life I had to muster all my courage and strength in order not to falter.  I have to admit that military training was really tough and as hard as I had imagined but I was determined to be strong and to persevere in order to succeed,” Ray says.

He says that the first few weeks during which they strove to adapt to the stringent military rules were really decisive and several of his colleagues including the only female could not withstand the severity of the process. But he admitted that as the weeks passed things improved a little as their bodies got accustomed to the new way of doing things.

During a weeklong field training towards the end living out of the camp in the wild, Ray believes it was the time everyone gave all they had to give as it was the last and most determining part.

But he admits that it has been a life-changing experience. At the end of the training only 14 young men were welcomed into the SPDF family.

Ray describes himself as a very ambitious and determined person who once his mind is made up remains steadfast, something which has pushed him through to the end of his training.

Looking at the future

With the first bridge crossed, Ray says he is now ready and confident enough to face the future.

“I am really happy and soon I will be taking my new posting and I am looking forward to that,” says Ray who will spend this week on pass with family.

Family life and leisure

The youngest child from a family of four -- two older brothers and a sister, Ray expressed heartfelt gratitude to his family, instructors in the SPDF and everyone who has helped and supported him in one way or another throughout his training.

He admits that in the beginning his parents were a little skeptical about him joining the military and that he needed to convince them of all the opportunities the institution offers.

“I see myself fulfilling my dream and becoming a fully-fledged engineer and I am really happy,” says Ray.

With all his siblings on Praslin, Ray lives with his girlfriend and four-year-old daughter at Barbarons.

When he is not working he enjoys cooking.

“Being in the kitchen and doing some good cooking is something I enjoy very much,” says Ray.

He admits that here on Mahé he does not go out much but prefers to spend quality time with his girlfriend and daughter watching television.

By Mary-Anne Lepathy