Page 50 - KRH Year of 2021 CREST

48 The Regimental Journal of The King’s Royal Hussars
The Warrant Officers’ and Sergeants’ Mess
The year began with the appointment of a new mess com- mittee with WO2 Mossop at the helm as PMC supported by SSgt Harrison as PEC. The RSM direction being clear, regain what the pandemic had taken away from mess life and begin to reshape activities within the parameters of the ‘new normal.’ First task to reinstate regular mess meetings, be it outside, inside, over zoom or a mixture of all three. The introduction of the mess prize draw was a welcome addition to proceedings, despite some wild accusations that it’s some- how a fix!
Force health protection measures meant our first function came late in the summer and circumstances meant it had to be held elsewhere; what better place than the Legion! A horse racing event was held to raise funds for a worthy cause. Tom Horbury, a former Hussar and from many cur- rent mess members’ peer group, tragically lost his daughter, Freyja, to cancer, in support of the wards and charities that supported her the mess raised £505, with a noteworthy con- tribution coming from Sgt Alan Kendal, donating his night’s winnings.
The Mess LIMS have made full use of their ‘front room’ and with an ever-increasing cohort joining the 2000hrs ‘Choco Milk Club’, the LIMs bond has never been stronger. With Tuesday being the new Thursday a steady stream of socials have taken place, a highlight being pub games night. The addition of the newly installed pool table and dart board have really brought the mess together and often steers folk away from talking ‘shop’ (for the most part). The committee have worked hard to ensure they are integrated in a way that it doesn’t detract from our heritage.
With the return of Covid restrictions just as mess functions were finally on the horizon the RSM and his committee faced a difficult decision, cancel all events, or continue a much smaller scale. Opting for the latter option, this was a massive blow to the mess and a decision that was taken with heavy hearts as dine outs and Ramnuggar are and always will be an excellent opportunity to reconnect with the wider regimental family at ERE. Something we all look forward to doing once restrictions allow. A tremendous amount of hard work had to take place by the committee in the background, never has there been so much legislation and hoops to jump through. Capt Baines dine out was executed seamlessly by WO2 Dave
Oakes and his committee, with WO2 Joel Thorpe deliver- ing a dine out toast that will go down in mess history. The mess bid farewell and wished him well in future endeavours alongside another pillar of the mess, WO2 Pete Pollard. Ramnuggar itself was a scaled back event, but no less success- ful thanks to Mossy and his team, finally giving some sense of business as usual.
Finally, as tradition dictates the annual Officers to Seniors took place. This year’s sports being hockey and Frisbee rugby. Both teams put forward an eclectic mix of competitive players but the SNCO cohort pushed ahead to be crowned victors. The Carols as always were brutal, yet good hearted fun, and with spies in both camps this year highlighted some cringeworthy exploits. As always, we were well hosted before the RSM extended the invite to our mess. A visit from Santa, a possession of the PEC
and some ‘party’ games made for an excellent night drew a busy and demand- ing year to a close in style.
The Warrant Officers’ & Sergeants’ mess had a fantastic year given the restrictions with Covid 19 however has maximised the opportunities in order to ensure our traditions continue in strength.
Mess Sleeping Champion 2021
Capt Baines is dined out in style
Health & Safety Police