Winter outdoor uniform jacket : Miss G L Crawford, Voluntary Aid Detachments

Dark blue wool Voluntary Aid Detachments winter outdoor uniform jacket. The jacket is fully lined with blue cotton and has three patch pockets, two below the waist with buttoned flaps, and one small left breast pocket with a woven Red Cross badge. The jacket is fitted at the waist, and flares over the hips. It has a fold down collar and fastens at the front by two brass Australian Military Force buttons and a concealed hook and eye at the waist. A self fabric belt is secured around the waist with two belt loops and fastened by a metal slide buckle. The shoulder straps are held in place by small AMF buttons and have silver 'Australia' titles at the base. The colour patch of 2/6 Australian General Hospital is sewn to the upper arm of both sleeves. Two blue service chevrons edged in green are stitched to the lower right sleeve. Handwritten onto the small embroidered maker's label inside the right of the jacket is '78 G Crawford'. The inside of the jacket also has a slit pocket on each side.

Associated with the service of Gladys Lila Crawford who was born in Benalla, Victoria in October 1908. During the 1930s she worked as a mothercraft nurse and in May 1939, aged 31, joined the Voluntary Aid Detachments. In February 1941 she volunteered for overseas service and formally enlisted in the Australian Military Forces on 21 April with the service number V13447. On 17 October she was discharged and joined the Australian Imperial Force and was assigned the new number VFX64863. She served initially at 115 Australian General Hospital at Heidelberg and on 1 November sailed for the Middle East from Sydney aboard the Queen Mary. From November 1941 to March 1942 Gladys served as a nursing orderly with 1 AGH in Palestine, transferring to 6 AGH for the remainder of her overseas service. The VAD returned home to Australia early in 1943 and in March that year the women became members of the newly formed Australian Army Medical Women's Service. From her enlistment in the AAMWS on 22 March 1943 Gladys underwent training at Darley, Victoria before her posting to 2/6 AGH in Atherton, Queensland. She remained there for over a year, transferring to 116 AGH in Cairns on 23 October 1944. In January the following year she moved to Redbank to serve with 128 AGH, moving in September to her last unit, 102 AGH. She remained here until her discharge on 24 April 1946. After the war Gladys returned to mothercraft nursing, gaining her qualifications in nursing and kindergarten care in the late 1940s. Gladys also became active within the Returned and Services League, serving at one time in the late 1960s and early 1970s as president of the Returned and Servicewomen's sub-branch of Victoria. She died on 1 December 2000.