Left: Chris Graham, back row, second from the left as an Officer Cadet. Below: Chris Graham (left) UN Military Observer to the UNAVEM II mission in Angola.
expeditions, and play a role in musical productions. Equally, he recalls the challenges of “working through the levels from Bronze to Gold for the Duke of Edinburgh Award”, the “cadets courses, training and participation”, and the “character- building Saturday morning school and afternoon sport”. Post-College, Chris was selected for Regular Officer training, moving straight into the army. Following his initial training, he studied for a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) as an Officer Cadet at Massey University and then entered the Officer Cadet School at the Waiouru Military Camp for his commissioning course, graduating as a second Lieutenant in December 1986 into the Royal New Zealand Military Police. “The Military Police was excellent for opportunities, with multiple courses and deployments overseas,” Chris explains. “I specialised in VIP/close protection and trained in the United
Kingdom. I was posted as a UN Military Observer to the UNAVEM II mission in Angola 1992–1993, a peace-keeping mission during the elections and subsequent return to civil war.” The mission was established
By the end of 1993, Chris had decided it was time for a new challenge, retiring as a Captain but continuing in the Reserves (Intelligence) until 1999. “I had established a software business, Concept Engineering, with another army officer while still serving in the army, and, after leaving the army at the end of 1993, I decided to give the software business a go, and never looked back,” Chris says. His time in the army brought a wealth of skills and experiences, including “leadership roles in
to oversee and maintain a multilateral ceasefire, and
subsequent election. However, as the United Nations reported, despite the combined efforts of various organisations, “Angola plunged back into civil war”, with the conflict inflicting a “severe toll” on the civilian population.
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PHILANTHROPY
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