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RAOC Gazette - page 238

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Material type Journals
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Full title RAOC Gazette
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Publication date 1980
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Early date 1980
Late date 1980
Transcription much relieved when the DGOS and the remainder of the Unit's
officers, arrived to remove him from the hot seat.
Sergeant Lonnie AAC had provided his usual excellent buffet
supper which was much appreciated by all present
The only blight on the proceedings was not discovered until
some days later when the Unit photographer, Captain Davie,
found out that not one of his exposures had turned out due to a
faulty flash. Regretfully we have no photographic record of
General and Mrs Brown's first, and we hope by no means last,
visit to 51 Company.
South East District
^^^i^^^
WHEN the first mention was made of a
^r-n.
^^^,
' moratorium ' I must admit that I had to
^jBgJKtSV
check with my dictionary that it wasn't
J^4|HPHK3L%
some kind of gastric disorder. Having
I^T^Tw^B>B
been inundated for the last month with
m'4&fi«2LK<J
messages and letters listing moratorium
\*9BP*m^rM
after moratorium, alarm and despondency
^^?^\£*l^f
surrounds the branch and my original
^^^*^_^^r
thoughts now seem apt.
^^*"^^^
Amidst the doom and gloom one must
remain cheerful and realise that these cuts must eventually
balance themselves out—for example the cut in the purchase of
insecticide will probably result in an increase in the cockroach
population, this however will soon be resolved when they all die
of frost bite due to the heating cuts.
We welcome to the District Major Leslie Cousins (Head-
quarters 54 Company RAOC), Captain Roy Symons (ASU Aider-
shot), and W02 J. Mayes (Stores Section TRE Workshop). Cap-
tain Claude Lilley has left for ASU Celle and W 2 Dave
London has moved across to Stores Section REME Workshop
on promotion to WOl.
6 Field Force
ty
THIS month has seen much activity in the
^
Company, with the start of the Potential
^^^
Officer's course. Six candidates for RCB
are
£S5>v5teth
being put through their paces on basic
XfftS^^
training. Echoes of basic drill orders the
^ M H T
stamp of feet and the shout of ' gun firing
a
^J^^^Bi.
' l nght—gun stops' followed by many
^HPH^^^N^
metallic clicks and grunts take us all back
JJ^^
to our early days.
M
Exercise Dyfed Trek saw the Company
**
marching one hundred miles of the Pem-
brokeshire Coastal Path; Enough energy was retained by our
indians to look forward to a disco in Haverfordwest in the
middle of the week. The evening eventually came and the
Company ' Smooth Movers' arrived to find it was a roller-
skating disco! There were more minor injuries and bruises here
than during one hundred miles of marching.
During the same week twelve would-be Hang Glider Pilots
launched themselves into Exercise Flying Dragon II, six of
them achieving their pilots licences at the end. Talk of three
hundred and sixty degrees, wing-overs and whip stalls now
drift around the bar with a most convincing tone.
As everybody knows, a valuable part of any Ordnance
Unit is its civilian staff personnel, very often unsung, who do a
good job within the Unit. Here is a brief profile on one of our
civilian key workers, Mrs Jackie Shepard.
Mrs Jackie Shepard—our very hard working Company
typist, started work in her present post in September 1976
with the old 1 Parachute Logistic Workshop Squadron which
was then part of 16 Parachute Brigade.
On the disbanding of 16 Parachute Brigade on 31st March
1977 and the start of 6th Field Force Ordnance Company on
1st April 1977, Jackie carried on her sterling work with the new
Company.
ACCOMMODATION
SERVICES UNIT ALDERSHOT.
We
recently bade farewell to yet another long serving civilian
member. Mr Thomas M. Carr, Senior Storekeeper AES was
bom in Edinburgh on 29th August 1915, saw service with the
Royal Artillery both pre-War and during 1939/45. He joined the
Command Ordnance Depot Aldershot in 1945 and has served the
Corps for thirty five years, more recently at the old Field Stores
and AES Kitchener Road. Mr Carr was awarded the Imperial
Service Medal in 1975 for loyal and devoted service. During his
long association with the Corps he made many friends and helped
countless colleagues and ' customers ' alike.
ASHFORD STATION.
A recent departure was Sergeant Dave
Lloyd from ACIO Ashford to BAOR as Staff Sergeant and
newly married. What more could a man want! By publication
date Staff Sergeant Dave Todd from the Clerical Training Wing,
Intelligence Centre will have moved to NEDIST being replaced
by Sergeant (soon to be Staff Sergeant) Garry Brindle. Just to
prove you don't have to be a Senior NCO to work for the In-
telligence Corps we belatedly welcome Private Jim Galloway who
is the Chief Postmaster in Templer Barracks.
Rumour has it that Corporal Bob Sutton has been given a
lengthy extension at AIDU (East) and is in the middle of house
buying. Still with all his 1771's that should not cause too much
of a problem!
The Work Study Report on the Training Materiel Park was
favourably received by CRAOC and the OC but not by Q
Quartering SEDIST when they heard the cost was in the region
of £250,000. With the present cuts in expenditure we will be
lucky to set £25!
Our recent most welcome visitors (for three weeks) have been
ex-Apprentices Greenacre, Anderson, Campion and Gawthorpe
on loan from an understanding Apprentice College in Deepcut
It is hoped that their stay with the OSU is beneficial to both
parties and does not put them off RAOC for life.
ACCOMMODATION
SERVICES UNIT WORTHY
DOWN.
Colonel Green visited the station recently and presented Mr
William Farr with the Imperial Service Medal at a ceremony
held in the Civil Service Club, Flowerdown Camp. Mr Farr
joined the Royal Victoria Hospital, Netley, as a watchman in
1945 and was later promoted to gateman and patrolman in the
hospitals police force. At the age of fifteen, Mr Farr joined the
Merchant Navy and sailed on the mail service between South-
ampton and South America. During the war he served with the
Royal Navy. Two years ago he received a special Certificate
of Commendation from the C-in-C UKLF for the many hours
of spare time he gave to teaching patients the skills of printing, •
which is one of Mr Farr's main hobbies.
Mrs Jackie Shepard.
Jackie who lives in Farnborough, is married, with two
boys. Her husband an ex-REME Artificer, now works for a
small engineering firm repairing wheelchairs.
She shares the wealth of her experience with the Com-
pany, and spares no effort in meeting the deadlines and coping
with the day to day stress. Jackie is a valuable member of
the Company Office and administration team; a team member
we all miss if her swivell chair is empty! She is hard working,
cheerful and a real asset to the Company. A key worker
indeed!
Farewell's:
Sergeants Spooner and Yarwood, Lance
Corporal Baxter and families.
Welcomes to: Sergeant Parker and family, Privates Aspey,
Ramsey, Peacock and Sapherson, Lance Corporal Wallace and
family.
— 189 —
Book number R0404