Page 121 - MERCIAN Eagle 2011

remained at £5. One of the worries voiced at the meeting was the general waning of support throughout the Association and several ideas were put forward with the aim of defeating the apathy of members. After the meeting all
unable to feed our hungry members. Into the breech stepped Linda and the result has been spectacular. So much so that the ‘Friday Night Supper Club’ is gaining new members every week and Linda’s cooking
and Helen Tarbuck were seen graphically demonstrating the art of shivering. It seems that everyone who was present at the Bar in the Castle, particularly during the two hours from eleven am until one o’clock, helped set a new record. In that time Iggy Jones and his team of still exhausted barmen sold 500 pints of beer! It is not recorded if any of the record breakers actually saw a horse!
On July 23rd, the branch held yet
another world famous Dinner/Dance at
Fox Barracks, our guests were Lt Col Andy Hadfield and his wife Rachel. The Colonel is now languishing in the depths of Whitehall following his successful command of 1 MERCIAN and probably appreciated picking up a few pointers from our Chairman and President sat either side of him; we look forward to a few changes in the defence of the Realm.
members present and the ladies enjoyed an excellent curry supper.
One answer to the question of declining attendance is being provided at Chester by one person in particular namely, Mrs Linda Jones.
during the two hours from eleven am until one o’clock, Iggy Jones and his team of still exhausted barmen sold 500 pints of beer!
goes from strength to strength. My expanding waist band is irrefutable evidence of this.
In May, the annual invasion of the Castle and Racecourse took place; it was great
to meet so many old and new friends yet again. This year there was a terrific
Of recent weeks we
have noted a slow but sure increase in the number of members turning up on Friday evenings. This welcome change began just before Christmas when we suddenly found ourselves without cooks and consequently
turnout from 1 MERCIAN (Cheshire) and leading the charge of the old and bold were Major Mike Tarbuck, Major Ron Goodwin, Major Dave Sherlock (to name but a few) and, having flown in from Dubai, Keith
119
Ellesmere Port Branch
by Gordon Kipps
Our meetings are well attended which shows that the spirit of the Old 22nd is still alive and kicking hereabouts.
As well as the usual monthly meetings, we held a number of other social events such as a day trip to Llandudno, which
was much enjoyed by all, except for one member who felt that he was “ripped off” when he was asked to pay £14 for two coffees and two cheese toasties. It is rumoured that another member, dismayed by the price of a cup of coffee, assumed that the cup was included in the price! Quite a few found their way to the local RBL Club for an enjoyable lunch.
Our Standard Bearer, Tom Simkins, proudly carried our Standard at the funerals of our Mercian fallen and we are grateful to Mr Lewis Arrowsmith, proprietor of Sutton Executive Cars, for providing (entirely unsolicited) transport to enable members to attend them.
In October nine members travelled to Stockport for the East Cheshire Reunion, congratulations go to Stockport Branch for an excellent event.
1 MERCIAN (Cheshire)’s Homecoming March was proudly witnessed by most of the Branch. It was great to see the towns- folk turning out in such great numbers to show their support. The Mayor, Councillor Gareth Anderson invited one of our WW2 veterans, George Ford, to stand alongside him on the saluting dais, a unique honour.
Our Christmas Dinner took place a few days before the proper festival and 28 members and friends enjoyed a traditional menu.
No surprises at our AGM when most of the Branch Officers were returned unopposed. John (Tiny) Davies stood down as Chairman and
of boots round the Cenotaph. Later in May, we joined again with our friends from Birkenhead Branch for an outing to York.
Ellesmere Port always does justice to Armed Forces Day, and together with other ex-service association colleagues Tom Simkins and I helped to organize a great
was succeeded by Bill Kearney.
we took the opportunity to raise the profile of the CRA, and “flash the badge”
day where we took the opportunity to raise the profile of the CRA, and “flash the badge”
We were joined by many old friends at
our two services of commemoration, at the Boat Museum, where
The dedication of our
new Branch Standard
took place on the day
after the Meeanee
Reunion. A very
successful event and
our sincere thanks go out to all who gave their support on the day, especially the CRA President Brigadier Donnelly, who delayed his return home.
Pte Daniel Hellings QGM laid a wreath, and at the Regimental Copse in Whitby Park. The showers didn’t spoil our spirit one little bit. Thanks to CRA Chairman Pete Gresty for making the time to attend, even though he had to make a hasty departure to catch a plane on a business trip.
After a fairly uneventful March and April the Branch gave their support to the local VE Day commemoration. What a shame that we could only muster fourteen pairs
THE MERCIAN EAGLE