Page 6 - CAMPAIGN Spring 2022

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CAMPAIGN Spring 2022
In Spite of Everything, Joy...
As I was writing this, I heard news of the death of Harry Billinge at the ripe old age of 96. Harry was not a Nuclear Veteran. He was a sapper. At the age of 18 he was one of the first British soldiers to land on Gold beach in 1944, in the Normandy landings.
Harry, who I once had the privilege of meeting, was one of only four men from his 10-man unit to survive the landings and subsequent battles in France.
He dedicated the rest of his life to remembering and honouring all who fell, and particularly his close comrades. Remarkably, he went on to raise more than £50,000 for Veterans’ Charities, including funds for a national Memorial overlooking the Normandy beaches. He surely deserved his MBE and the French Legion d’Honneur.
I was deeply moved to learn that almost Harry’s last words were ‘Love one another’ – the words of Jesus to his disciples shortly before his own cruel death on Good Friday.
He was one of the last of the surviving Second World War Veterans. Happily, many of our own Nuclear Veterans are still very much with us: indeed, they are the heart and soul of our organisation. I think they will understand why I have wanted to mention Harry Billinge, and his lifetime of remembering and to paying tribute.
To remember is indeed to pay tribute, and it is a very important part of the life of the BNTVA, as it is for all Veterans’ groups. The Trustees are working very hard to secure our Association for future generations, so that our Veterans’ stories of courage in service, and great suffering and frustration for many of them in the years that have followed, will never be forgotten or taken for granted.
During the years in which I have tried to serve the Nuclear community, I have increasingly come to understand the bonds that are forged, in peacetime as well as war, by people who are drawn together in a common purpose, and who share the intensity and close comradeship of Service life.
I have reminded you that Harry Billinge’s longing that everyone should love another led him to quote words of Jesus. Jesus uttered them on the same occasion that he told the disciples, ‘I have called you friends’. These were the men – and the women who were their companions - who shared the company of Jesus, knew his mind and would keep alive his message of hope and new life as they continued his work.
The days before Easter remind us of great suffering and pain, leading to the crucifixion of Jesus. The pain is brought into sharp focus this year by the unimaginable suffering in the lives of the people of Ukraine.
But the week ends with the empty tomb, and the Easter joy that gave birth to the Christian Church.
It is a joy that continues to inspire and motivate countless people all over the world, even in the midst of tragedy, and to lead them – for all our failings – to try at least to love one another as friends.
With my prayers and very best wishes to the BNTVA family for a truly Happy Easter.
Very Rev. Nicholas Frayling KStJ BNTVA Chaplain