General News
9 March, 2026
Mum marches on
A CAIRNS mother who lost her son last year will walk 300 kilometres in March to support veteran mental health through Soldier On’s March On challenge.
After losing her son, Lochlain Cross, in January 2025, Anne Ryan has committed to the 300km effort in his memory.
Lochlain Cross was 20 when he died. A serving member of the Australian Navy, he had wanted the job since he was small.
“Lochlain was a great kid,” Ms Ryan said.
“He was very cherished by us, the whole family. He brought a lot of joy to my life. He was adventurous. He was outgoing. He was a people person. He needed to be around people a lot. He loved me. He loved family.
“Since he was tiny, he used to sit and watch Sea Patrol over and over again,” Ms Ryan said.
“It was his dream job.”
He grew up on the Queensland coast and felt most at ease on the ocean.
“That was where he felt at home and at peace,” she said.
“He’d send me pictures on board the navy boats of the view. Just magic. He was living his best life.”
Service was familiar in their family. Lochie’s father was a police officer, his older brother served in the ADF and Anne worked as an emergency nurse.
“We all serve the community in different aspects,” she said.
“And he wanted to contribute to that in his own way.”
Looking back, she said there was no single cause but cumulative pressure.
“The navy – the nature of that type of job, similarly with police, similarly with emergency nursing – the pressure and the adrenaline with those types of jobs can contribute to the battering of your resilience.
“He put in some gallant efforts. He was into his fitness. He was doing a lot of things to try and regroup from that.
“He couldn’t see how much he was loved,” she said.
“He couldn’t see how much support he actually had.”
For four years before his death, Anne and Lochie walked Soldier On’s March On challenge together, completing 96 kilometres across March to raise funds and awareness for veteran mental health. Last March was the first time she walked without him.
This year she will walk 300 kilometres.
“March On has become how I turn my grief into hope,” she said.
“If even one life is saved, then I’ve done something good.”
March On is Soldier On’s annual virtual walking and running challenge held each March. Participants complete 96 kilometres across the month, reflecting the length of the Kokoda Track, while raising funds to support veteran mental health and wellbeing. Registration is free and open to everyone.
More information is available on the March On with Soldier On website: www.marchonchallenge.org.au
