Welsh Guards , Falklands Reunion Wrexham 2011

It is now 29 yrs since the Galahad was sunk in the Falklands Conflict , so now it is time to remember our fallen comrades , this is why we have a reunion every year to pray for them and to lay wreaths at the Welsh Guards Memorial that was placed for them in Wrexham ,North Wales. This Is the reason why it happens every year.


The Reunion was held on the 18 June 2011 ,starting off with a service of remembrance at Parish Church of St Giles, Wrexham , from there we then move to the Falklands Memorial at Bodhyfryd for the laying of the wreaths for family and friends.

The Day Has Come
Well now its time for me to travel up to Wrexham , as its Saturday 18 June 2011, I got up at around 04.30 so could make my last panics as to make sure all my kit was packed , Blazer, shirt , tie , trousers, shoes and finally my Medals. Had breakfast and now the wait for the taxi to take me to the station .The journey by train took 3 hrs with 4 changes on route ,with 7 minutes between each train ,I had to rush from one platform to the other so I did not miss the connection .

While I was waiting in Chester Station for the Wrexham train I was chatting on the phone to my mate Jones-Parry about the weekend when the train pulled in.,I entered the train only to be approached by no other than James Price as he was on the train with Kevin Webber. All 3 of us finished our journey to Wrexham together. I caught a taxi from the station to the Grove Guest House where I was staying. As the taxi turned in I met Peter Blaszkiw there , he was just leaving the B & B ,so I asked him if he could wait for me as I did not know where to go.

We made a move to the Wynnstad Hotel where we met up with more Welsh Guardsmen for a beer. As I stood at the bar getting a drink a quite voice said to me you don'tremember me do you. I looked at him and was thinking hard ,but no I did not. Viv Williams ( 05 ) Evans ( 09 ) It was a long time since i seen him ,to be honest it was 35 yrs, a very long time . We started to chat and it was like we were where never apart , That is the good thing about soldiers they work, live and risk there life for each other but there friendship will be there forever . We chatted about our time in the Guards Depot as he was my Drill Instructor , we had a couple of drinks over our chatting then we headed to the Church.

When we got to the church there were a good few people out side the main entrance. Here are some of the guys
When it was time we proceeded into the church for our service to remember and pray for our fallen. It was a nice service where we sang a couple of songs and said some prayers. The last post was played followed by a 1 minute silence, the silence ended with reveille been called. The service ended with both National Anthems (Welsh and English) . After we went outside and had a few word, plus we met mates that we hadn't seen in a long time. We chatted about the days events and going back in-time to the good old days ( see video ) of when we were serving.
After the church we proceed to the Memorial for the laying of the wreaths where Chris Hopkins was in charge. This was a very sad moment for all for we will never forget them and there names will go down in history. Now we move onto the War Memorial Club for drinks and refreshments and to chat about the good old days and whats new .

At The War Memorial Club
Now we make are way to the War Memorial Club for some beers and genuinely meet the people you have not seen in many years, the atmosphere was good and laughter could be heard around the room , there was some somber moments when some reflected to the conflict ,but I think its good to talk about our time there. See the Film in what we was doing .

Problems on the road

Well I have been on the road now for 2 months and I am glad to be back behind the wheel of a Truck, to have the freedom of the road. The road system in the UK has got much worst now, with road works all over the place. M25 is know as the biggest car-park in Europe ,as traffic never moves on rush hour.A lot of places are like this now Motorways have gone from 3 lanes to 4 now to allow for the mount of traffic on Britons roads ,

Truck park prices have doubled in the last 4 yrs it cost now 15 pounds around UK but around London its 20/30 pound a night ,its highway robbery, now a lot of trucks try to park on side of the roads in lay-byes ,were its not rely safe place to park. Thee truck parks are in a right state rubbish is dumped anywhere except in the bins , and in the summer months it smells of urine very bad , the toilets are just as bad as they look like they could do with a right good scrub or renewed . But the showers are the worst of all its a very small room where you struggle to hang your cloths up so they do not get wet ,wall are covered in gunk and crime and the floor is wet all the time .They need sorting out.


I could go on forever about the trucking life in the UK,as we have no respect form the general public because we truckers are a nuisance on the road to them .but what the forget is they would have noting if it was not for the truck drive who brought all they need to live.