Appointment of Lt Col Tex Pemberton

On behalf of the Committee and members of the Surrey Branch I should like to take this opportunity to congratulate Lt Col Tex Pemberton on being appointed the National Chairman of our organisation.  He has the support of all our members and we wish him well.  I know that he will make a valid contribution to the NMBVA.

11^th August: Social get together

8^th September: Social get together

13^th October: Business meeting.

Branch AGM was held on 14 April.  All committee members were re-elected for a further year.  The Branch finances are in a healthy state with membership standing at 88.

PJM:

Two further presentations were held in Reading and Horsham .  Only a few Surrey members now await their medal.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 2010

the branch are off to Sandhurst Military Academy at the invitation of the Commandant to witness the dress rehearsal of the passing out parade of the Malaya Company.  If the previous visit is anything to go by this will be a most memorable day.

 Merdeka Day Lunch - will be held at the Royal British Legion, West Clandon.  This is once again being organised by Ken and Marion Needham.

Remembrance Day - the Branch will meet and parade in Guildford.  A Poppy wreath will be laid in honour of the Malaya and Borneo Veterans.

EVENTS IN 2009

Click on photos to enlarge

At the end of the Parade the horse went up the stairs and into lunch also.

This evening we held our second AGM.  Mike Hall has had to relinquish the Chairman role due to a vast increase in the work load of his day job.  He will however continue to produce the news letter for us every two months.  Chas Timms was then voted in as the new Chairman and Mike took over the Vice Chair.

The Branch finances are in a healthy state and well able to support all the activities planned for the year.

Come to the cookhouse door!!

Early November was very busy for the Branch Members.  We again Paraded in Guildford on Remembrance Sunday and prior to that planted our cross in the Field of Remembrance at Westminster.  Ours is centre left in the photo with the NMBVA logo.  The second photo shows HRH Prince Philip talking to Don Mott of the North Kent/South East London Branch.  Later in the month some members made a return visit to Wootton Bassett as yet more Soldiers were repatriated.  There were 2 NMBVA Standards on Parade this time.  The month ended much more happily with a 'Burns Night' themed Dinner at the RBL West Clandon.  Ably organised by Debby and Dave Clark, everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable evening and raised more than £1,000 for Help The Heroes and the Gurkha Welfare Trust.

EVENTS IN 2010

PJM Medal

 At long last, there is movement on the PJM front. An investiture took place at the Malaysian High Commission on 27 January 2010 and 12 members of the Surrey Branch were among the 70 veterans who were honoured that day.  The High Commissioner was retiring after more than 6 years in the post and he particularly wanted to include a group of Chelsea Pensioners in his last presentation.  He apologised for the delay explaining that it was over a year since the last ceremony.  It was nevertheless a very moving experience and we all came away feeling that the Malay people were most appreciative of all that we had done to enable them to become and remain an independent nation.  An excellent buffet lunch was kindly provided.  The noodles not only brought back fond memories of our time in the Far East but additionally enabled us to meet up with old friends and to make new ones.

Sunday 9^th May

The National Arboretum at Alrewas

On Sunday 9^th May Surrey Branch went to the National Arboretum at Alrewas for a return visit.  There we met up with members of Yorkshire and Birmingham Branches as well as the National Treasurer, Graham Bamford to pay respect to the Comrades who gave their all in the Far East over many years.  We were also able to pay our respects at the Basra Wall to those who gave their lives in the recent conflict.  Standards from Yorkshire as well as our own were on parade.  Our chair Chas said a few words at each memorial and our President laid tributes.  After this we all had free time to circulate around the site.  All in all a very good day.

Wootton Bassett

On Thursday 13th May seven members of the Surrey and North Kent Branch attended Wootton Bassett for the home coming of Corporal Chris Harrison of 40 Commando Royal Marines.

 The weather held good for us and the day passed sadly but well.  The street through the town was again packed with ex servicemen and civilian residents mingling together to show respect. One of our members, Ian Duncan BEM (Scots Guards), although being badly disabled insisted on standing and saluting as the Corporal passed.  This showed great courage and a real example to us all.  There were a large number of old servicemen on parade wearing the PJM which was pleasing to see.

 We laid a poppy wreath at the town memorial on behalf of ourselves and the NMBVA in general.  We all stood hoping against hope that this conflict will end soon and this procedure at the town be allowed to stop.

 I should like to thank all those who attended and all those who sent me good wishes – I know your thoughts were with us.                                            

On Sunday 20^th June, twenty four members and friends enjoyed a coach trip to Historic Winchester the one time capital of England.  There we were able to visit the Cathedral and Great hall housing what is deemed to be King Arthur’s round table.  From there we visited a number of local military museums including the Gurkha museum which delighted us all - the staff on duty were very helpful and appreciated our visit.

On Saturday 26^th June, a number of members attended the Armed Forces Day Parade in Woking.  There we met up with a number of serving and ex-service personnel.  Due respects were paid at the town memorial before we marched back to the Royal Naval club where we were entertained with a buffet, numerous drinks and the chance to talk to friends new and old.

On Sunday 18^th July, the branch had a great day out at the Historic Dockyard, Portsmouth.  We had the opportunity to visit HMS Warrior and Victory, the local naval museum and time to take a boat tour round the harbour before departure.  The weather was kind and all in all, this was a great day out.