Wedded to the cause: a couple on the frontline
This married military couple are staying apart to help fight coronavirus.
Major Chantelle Miller and her wife Staff Sergeant Tara Miller have stepped up to the challenge of working apart to help the country fight coronavirus. Regulars in the army, the Millers are no strangers to a fast-paced schedule but when the opportunity came to volunteer, they jumped at the chance to help.
Staff Sergeant Tara Miller has temporarily paused her job in IT to become a first responder, using her voluntary medical training and experience to step up to the situation. She responds to every emergency- from trips and falls to cardiac arrest- driving ambulances to get to patients in critical times.
Tara says:
I feel so happy about how the country has come together in these hard times. It’s important that we continue to look after each other and the vulnerable.
Tara’s wife, Major Chantelle, has also left the Royal Military Police for the time being, to be a military planner with the Cardiff and Vale Health Board. She is planning the on-the-ground crisis responses and back-up plans in Wales.
They have been apart for over a month while working in separate countries: Tara with the South Central Ambulance Service, which covers 6 counties from Oxfordshire to East Sussex, and Chantelle working in Cardiff on the Welsh response.
Chantelle’s deployment was confirmed on a Friday and she left the next day: a fast turnaround in demanding times.
Chantelle says:
I am incredibly proud of Tara working as a military first responder helping people in their time of need, with her compassion and empathy.
