A3 Squad Royal Marines

[Greensleeves]

I'm wondering if any of you remember Stan Green who was (I believe) a PTI in the Royal Marines?  He had several brothers who also served.   He was older than the marines in the photo, because he would have been in his 90s now.

Regards,
Greensleeves

[Stonehouse Boy]

Hi joboy and pedlar
Cpl Croke was my Dad it was a surprise and a shock to see his name come up here.
My Dad passed away in 1997 aged 75 after a long illness, he was on the Parade Staff at Deal and was the holder of the Distinguished Service Medal.
joboy this is the first time I have seen this picture very few pictures of his time in the Royal Marines have survived I must try and get a copy if I can.
pedlar I did laugh at your story of my Dad coming back late and failing to turn to in the morning if only he was here today I would have reminded him of the fact.

[joboy]

Hi Stonehouse boy ........... well that is a surprise ......... glad you are with Rootschat.
If you take the question of how to get a photo perhaps our clever folk who mend damaged photos etc here would be only too happy to oblige.
Joe

[rosie99]

Hi joboy / stonehouse boy

If you right click the photo you can save it to your computer      I have just done this and am very pleased with the result so thank you joboy a lovely picture for my family album.

Rosie

[Stonehouse Boy]

Hi Joe
Good to hear from you.
It was by chance a friend saw your post and told me about it.
Dad came from a Royal Marines family he followed his Brothers and Father into the Royal Marines, his Father was the holder of the MBE and the Military Medal. With your permission I will ask the clever people who can restore pictures to have a look at it for me. The parade ground where you are all standing for your picture is now used as a car park for the Royal Marines
how times have changed.
John

[pedlar]

 Stonehouse Boy,

 Great to hear from you.  I was certainly surprised, after all my attempts to contact old shipmates, to see the picture that Joboy posted.  And to recognise "Crokey" was a bonus...

 960 Squad regretted having to leave your dad behind when we were posted on to Lympstone for more advanced training. I never saw him again.  I say "I" never saw him again because whilst I was training at Lympstone I had an accident on the assault course, which put me in sick-bay for six weeks.

 Consequently, I was back-squadded to 961 in which squad I finished my National Service.  My six weeks in sick-bay cheated me out of a stint in Malta where 960 finished their National Service training.  Whether my old 960 oppos ever saw your dad again, I don't know.  I did see one or two of my old 960 mates when they came back to be demobbed, but they never said whether they had ever run across "Croaky" again...

 So sorry to hear that Corporal Croke died after a long illness.  I'm sure that if any of my old squad mates appear on Roots they would be sorry, too, because - I repeat - your dad was a popular bloke, and I, for one, regret the fact he is not still around.

 Regards,

 pedlar
 

[Stonehouse Boy]

Hi Pedlar,
Good to hear from you.
My Dad stayed in the Royal Marines until 1957 and regretted coming out until he had done his 22 years he had done twenty but four of this was boys service which did not count towards a pension.
In the 1980S he was contacted by a chap called Bowering who was a SC in 961 NS Squad and he came down from Somerset to visit Dad. They had a good time swinging the lamp about the old days its now been thirteen years since Dad passed on and is still missed by his family.

John

[pedlar]

  Hi, John,

  You mention a bloke who came to see your dad in the 80's by the name of Bowering.  Sometimes, 81-year-old memories can be shaken up at the mention of a name that perhaps it has not thought of for donkey's years...!

  The name Bowering certainly shook my memory up because I remember a fellow squaddie by the name of Terry Bowering. He was quite a nice bloke, with whom got on well, but (I think) he was a public schoolboy and out of my 'class'.

  If I remember rightly, Terry palled up with another public schoolboy called Ramsden and if my memory serves me right, they were both being considered as 'officer material' at the time I went into sick-bay for six weeks.  I don't know what became of them or whether they actually did enter for officer training.

  I wonder if the 'Bowering' that visited your dad is the one I am thiinking about?

  Anyway, John, it's great to be in contact with you.  Funny thing is, only recently, I was contacted by the son of one of my old schoolteachers - and I consider that being contacted by both you and he is quite a co-incidence...

  Cheers,

  Jim Pedley

 

[Stonehouse Boy]

Hi Jim
Yes the Bowering that came to see Dad did his time in the Royal Marines
and then came out. He then got a commission in the Army and retired a Lt.Colonel. He let me copy his old squad picture of 961 NS Squad which shows you in the second row Jim and also Ramsden.

John