NORTHERN IRELAND
CONFERENCE MARCH 2009
Branch News
World War II submariners will take part in a national conference and remember fallen comrades with the help of a £4,900 Awards for All grant. The project is one of eight in Kent and 63 in the South East sharing funding worth £455,288 in the latest round of awards.
South Kent Submariners Association in Shepway receives £4,900 to take 19 long-serving veterans to a conference in Northern Ireland in March 2009, including some who fought in the Second World War. The group will also visit the historic naval base at Londonderry where many were stationed in the 1950s and 1960s, and WWII depot ship HMS Caroline in Belfast. Without funding just one delegate would have been able to make the trip. Ken Budd, Secretary of the South Kent Submariners Association , said: “This is the first National Conference to take place in Northern Ireland, which makes it very special because so many of us served there. It's a rare opportunity for our members, and for many it will be the last chance they get to meet up with old friends and share experiences and memories. Of course there will be some sadness too as we remember brothers we lost along the way.
“Submarines have been important in the history of the British armed forces, and the first one – HMS Holland – was commissioned in 1901. They were central to the First World War, the Second World War, the Cold War and the Falklands, and to this day they're stationed all over the world as deterrents. I served in the 50s and 60s as a ping bosun, which is the individual who listens to the ‘ping' noise to detect ships up to 25 miles away. Our oldest member is 86 and he began service even before WWII. No matter when we served it will be a wonderful, moving experience for each of us.”
