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 .
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