Page 139 - The Royal Lancers Chapka 2019
P. 139

                                REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL LANCERS (QUEEN ELIZABETHS’ OWN)
 tary activity Mick found time to woo and then marry Jane in October 1993. Postings as a crew commander in Warminster and as a troop sergeant in Swanton Morley followed, with Mick at- tending many professional courses including, significantly, his gunnery instructor’s course at Lulworth which led to his first posting to Lulworth as an instructor.
Mick returned to Regimental duty as the Regimental Gunnery Staff Sergeant and then as C SSM which included a further tour to Iraq in 2003/4 where his ability to build relationships was instrumental in the Squadron’s successful integration into the Light Infantry and then QRH battlegroups. As a SSM he truly made his mark with his blend of professionalism and compas- sion – one of his Squadron remembering him as ‘Firm, kind, understanding, disciplined, athletic and a legend.” I seem to re- member that it was also about this time that Mick’s dogs became prominent. Like him, long legged, fit, exuberant and gentle – if ever the saying that dogs take after their master then they were it.
A spell as RQMS(T) was followed by a return to the Gunnery School as the RSM and subsequent commissioning as a Late En- try Officer in 2007. Returning to the 9/12L in Germany, Mick and Jane embraced their new Mess at Bredebeck with character- istic flair. Professionally, in his first post as RCMO his care for the needs of the soldiers stood out, while as QM his administra- tive mastery was instrumental in his vital and enduring work sorting out the Regimental chattels.
This was Mick’s final posting with the Regiment, leaving in 2010 for RAF Marham as a Ground Liaison Officer. One of his favorite assignments away from the Lancer family was with the RAF as part of No 2 (Army Cooperation) sqn at Marham, Nor- folk. It was the home to the Tornado GR4 sqn. 2 Sqn AC whose motto is ‘Guardian of the Army’. He was posted as a Ground Liaison Officer where he deployed to support the Sqn’s deploy- ment to Libya on Operation ELLAMY and supporting Op- erations in Afghanistan. He quickly established himself as an essential asset to the Sqn; using his tank spotting genius. On deployment, he transformed himself into the OPFOR tactics subject matter expert and delivered the combined Typhoon and Tornado formations’ preflight briefings this is where he would receive his second GOC’s commendation. He returned to Bov- ington on promotion to Major as the OC of Waterloo Squadron. Here his natural interest in development and training was a par- ticularly strong fit – he was held up as ‘an exemplar of everyone should aspire to’, and the recruit retention rate reflected that. He also used his drive and energy to establish the Royal Armoured Corps Triathlon team. A job in Home Command in Aldershot preceded his return to a final posting in Bovington.
Whilst with the RAF is where he further developed his passion of Triathlon by establishing the RAC Triathlon squad. Mick was always one to lead from the front when it came to fitness and always one to seek fresh challenges. Mick fell in love with the va- riety and challenge offered by the sport of triathlon. A keen com- petitor, he fully embraced any opportunity to done Neoprene and Lycra. He went ‘Long’ and was a fully-fledged Ironman rac- ing a mere 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 22 mile run to top it off. Mick became one of the driving forces of triathlon within the RAC and became the Corps Secretary. Under his administra- tion he took the sport from strength to strength. He ran training camps and organized the RAC Championships which attracted over 160 competitors. His energy and drive to attract all ages, all genders and all standards across Regiments was infectious. He was all that you might aspire to as a Lancer – and his impact will continue to be felt for many years to come.
These are the bare facts of a highly successful military career of which anyone would be rightly proud. What marked Mick out however was that other component of Trust – his character.
Mick is rightly remembered as hard-working, dynamic and full of energy. He was the first to put his hand up for something new or to take the lead, in short, he imparted a buzz that was infec- tious until we felt that nothing was impossible. Importantly he did with a great sense of humour and positivity.
“We shall all miss this stalwart Lancer, a true professional who performed at the highest levels and did it with ease. He was a most articulate individual, who you needed on your team. A good listener, a friend who would offer support and sage advice. Such a super fit guy with a calm, cool presence that hid a real warm family man who, always worked above and beyond, not just at work but at home too for his family. Our deepest sympa- thies are with Jane, David, Jamie and mother Michelle on their loss of a dedicated husband, father and son
Brian Whitehorn
JR
Funeral of Brian (Snowy) Whitehorn 19th Oct 2019. Yet another sad day in the recent history of our ever-dwindling Lancer family! Brian ‘Snowy’ White- horn‘s ashes were laid to rest in the Cemetery at Oebisfelde in the county of Sachsen Anhalt, Germany. The service started at 1 pm in the Cemetery Chapel with the German priest giving a com- plete breakdown of Snowy’s life from birth to his passing on. In attendance were Snowy’s complete family and
 friends, plus a contingent of our remaining German based Lanc- ers. That contingent was made up from the following Ken God- frey, Bob Vaughan, Steve MacGowan, David Brock, John Hend- ry (ex-17/21L) Mr and Mrs Hogben, Mr and Mrs Spender, Elke Merritt and all the way from the UK Mr and Mrs Burge. After the service which included some beautiful bagpipe music Snowy’s ashes were laid to rest in the cemetery grounds with everyone paying their respects and saying their goodbyes. Eve- ryone present were invited to the wake which took place in a lo- cal establishment where a buffet was laid on. As always, a certain amount of reminiscing took place during the wake and after ap- proximately one and a half hours everyone started to disperse and return to whence, they came.
PH
Capt Anthony John Willcocks
Anthony Willcocks was born on 3rd July 1926. He joined the Army in December 1944 and was commissioned into the 17/21L on 16th December 1945. He was posted to C Squadron and served in Greece, Palestine and Egypt for a year as GSO3 GHQ MELF (AMA to the Chief of Staff) before leaving the Army in November 1948. He was awarded the Defence Medal, War Medal and GSM (Palestine). Anthony died aged 93 on 7th September 2019.
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