Episode 3 : Service, Sacrifice & Self – A Veteran’s Journey Beyond the Uniform

Service, Sacrifice & Self – A Veteran’s Journey Beyond the Uniform

In this powerful episode, Emma Donaldson shares her deeply personal journey of service, identity, and resilience—beyond her role as the partner of VC recipient Mark Donaldson.

After enlisting into the Army straight out of high school, Emma served as a Signaller across multiple postings around Australia. She met Mark in 2004 and supported him through seven overseas deployments and countless training cycles. But her story is so much more than life beside a decorated soldier.

Emma opens up about the emotional toll of military life—balancing motherhood, IVF, miscarriage, and postnatal depression—while also managing the long stretches of separation and uncertainty. And when it came time to transition out of the military, Emma faced a whole new challenge: rediscovering her identity and purpose as a civilian.

As Emma shares with raw honesty: “the whole family serves.”

This conversation is a must-listen for anyone who’s lived the military experience—whether in uniform or beside it—and especially for those navigating life after service.