AJ Janis and I were so shocked at hearing of your passing. What a sad loss to your family and to the service. we were together on white watch St/Marys until I retired in 2008. Absolute pleasure to work with a likeable Guy who could always be relied upon. An asset to the fire service and as said a great loss. God bless rest well mate   Steve Evans…

Well AJ i m honoured to have known you, it was ‘interesting’ working with you and an absolute pleasure to be one of your countless friends that you could never do enough for. Well done mate  you batted a captains innings right to the end. …

Working with you on green watch st Mary’s it was obvious straight away you were the sort of man who just made people smile. Always a ‘good morning young man’ or a ‘be lucky’ delivered with a smile on your face. From there bumping into you on jobs or on station in the last few months you always had time for a chat and a catch up. You’re so missed already mate x…

It was a honour to have worked with you mate, we had a good crack. You will be sorely missed, especially at download.x…

AJ It was always a great stat to a tour when we had a “handover” by your locker, nothing to do with work it was mostly about which bike part you needed polishing/welding making. Or more importantly what needed mending on you trailer tent! “Good morning young man” was the greeting with a beaming smile, I’ve been thinking……. that I will miss. A font of knowledge always there to help when I started my USAR journey, as so many have said cheerful in life always ready for a chat to put the world to rights! AJ, the world will be a darker place without that smile, stay lucky mate see you at the RV someday for a catch up. Rob….

It was a pleasure to work with you AJ and sit and listen to you playing surrounded by friends and a Bishops finger :).  Be free  Gina xx…

I consider myself to be very fortunate to have so many fond memories of working with you over the years. You as my Crew Manager on Green watch, St Marys for a number of years where we were lucky to be apart of such a close and social group of people. I joined you again years later as Crew managers on White watch, Eastleigh, albeit for a short period of time, and not forgetting time shared on the USAR retained section. You were always such a kind and considerate person, who was never too busy to help out a friend. I believe we should all take a lesson for ourselves in how you lived your life!  My parting comment has to be what you would always say whenever you said bye, “Be lucky” RIP AJ, Becks x…

AJ, I was truly shocked by your passing, the amount of people that you helped over the years was amazing and such an inspiration to myself. I can only say how amazing you were at helping me through the initial stages of YFA/Fire cadets at Ringwood. You also encouraged me with my RDS career and to kick start it.  Over the years our friendship group grew including the friendship we had with Connor. You have left behind such an amazing career and you will be sorely missed by friends, family and colleagues. Once again thank you. Myself, Mum and Dad send our condolences. …

It was an incredibly sad day when I heard of your passing AJ; a truly difficult time for many I am sure but even at this sad time I can’t help but smile when I think of you! What was not to love – those jeans, that guitar, those moves, the wild times, the long chats, the ‘can do’ spirit; the passion, the loyalty to the core and the absolute true gent spirit that lived within you, to look out for everyone, and you made time for us all. You will be missed a great deal AJ but rest easy now, knowing the memories will live on and we will probably never jump around in Tartan the same way you do!  Loved and missed immensely by people far and wide. UWMA, Joa x…

AJ, your passing has had a deep impact on us all. You have been such an incredibly capable member of our team and one who always had time for everyone, even a Chief! Your unassuming character always astounded me when I saw your vibrant talent on the music stage. Always in our hearts. Neil…

Sarah and I are truly gutted! I use to love arriving at station to AJ’s huge smile, always smiling and always interested in how I was……..and of course ready for a good chat, always time for a chat!!!!! AJ was a huge character and known by everyone, just shows how much of a personality he was. My thoughts are with you Fiona.  Lovely to see you most recently and so glad you could make it. My very best wishes Stew…

AJ, I was shocked to hear of you passing so soon, so I will take this opportunity to record the following to acknowledge all you did and how highly thought of you were… It was a privilige to have known and worked with you as you were a true professional, I always found you were happy to help others where ever you could and we had a laugh whenever we met depending upon what the occassion was, I enjoyed our conversations. You were also a family man, proud of their achievements as your lives progressed, you were an inspiration to everyone who met you. I hope our paths crossover once again where ever that may be. In the meantime although your music has stopped your melody and good memories of you will carry on in the hearts of those that knew you… My condolences to your family. Dave Smith    …

AJ, you were one of the most personable people I’ve ever met, every time we met on job or on station you were always smiling, always keen to help and get jobs done. you’ve dedicated a large portion of your life to helping others and that will be remembered by so many people. you’ll be sadly missed as a friend and colleague. Fi, my thoughts are with you now, I’m so sorry for your loss and I hope you can reflect on his life with happiness. …