Tom Westwell
Foreword by Brian Brenchley.
This is how Tom Westwell was found again after some 52 years. I received the email below from George White who was in Tom�s Squad in November 1953. I am pleased to say that I am well and truly back in touch, both by telephone and email.
Sent: Saturday, October 22, 2005 1:24 PM
Subject: E/MAIL ADDRESS
Brian,
Tom Westwell has tried to make contact with you, but seems he can not get you or it won�t let him in.
Kindest regards from him to you.
He was in No 1 Company with us in Egypt. Kindest regards. (22545993 George White).
For the past couple of weeks, I have been busy badgering Tom for photographs to put on the site.
Little did I know that his brother was also in the Regiment! John as you will read in the �Potted History� below, joined the 2nd Bn Corps of Drums in late 1949. I had left the same Corps when I went �Duty� in August 1949, so didn�t know him personally. However I did know Tom for the couple of years he spent as an instructor at the depot, and he was a very good instructor and a nice chap to know. I will now let Tom tell his own story.
Tom and John Westwell�s story of their Service.
John was working as a brush maker in Stoke-on-Trent, and I was an apprentice plumber, a job I started at the age of 14. We both joined the local Army Cadet Force and, after a couple of years both of us ended up in the Cadet Band. John was in the drum section and I was a bugler. Brother John then decided he wanted to join the Grenadier Guards, and in 1949 he signed on for 5 years and off he went to Caterham. He joined Sgt Hutchings� Squad and, after his training was completed he went off to join the 2nd Bn at Sennelager where he joined the Corps of Drums.
I carried on with the plumbing as I was a �bound apprentice� to my boss. I was due to do my National Service when I reached 18 but, as a �bound apprentice�, I could carry on with that until I was 21. However, having spoken to John and discovered the kind of life he was enjoying in the Army, I decided when I reached 19 that I would follow in his footsteps and get my National Service done. So it was off to the Recruiting Office where I met a Grenadier Recruiting Sgt and, once I told him John was already in the Regiment, it wasn�t long before I followed him on the road to Caterham.
The 3rd October 1951 found me arriving at the Guards Depot at Caterham, where I was greeted by a Scots Guards Sgt who had the biggest chest I had ever seen. He instructed me �to follow that soldier and make sure you keep up with him!� so; off I went at twenty to the dozen down the Drive thinking �What the hell have I let myself in for?� I then met Sgt Pope who was to be my Squad Instructor for the next 12 weeks, and ended up as squad leader. My previous experience in the Army Cadets stood me in very good stead and I certainly enjoyed my time at Caterham. I was talked into �signing on� for 3 & 7 whilst there and then it was off to Pirbright for the usual spell of training there. That completed, it was then off to join the 2nd Bn at Krefeld.
My brother John was already there serving in the Corps of Drums and already �sporting� a Good Conduct Stripe, quite the old sweat! As time passed, both John and I found ourselves on the same Cpl�s Course. What I didn�t realise at the time, was that a remark made by the Adjutant when I was �teaching� the Present Arms, would end up with me being sent back to Caterham as an Instructor. This happened after the Battalion had returned to England in late 1952, taken part in the Coronation etc, and once the dust had settled it was off to the Depot where I was put on the obligatory �Drill Course�, followed by taking four squads through with no failures and also where I met Brian Brenchley, he was Supt Sgt for three of these.
In my wildest dreams, I would never have believed that 50 years later I would exchanging emails with him, and once again receiving guidance from him, only this time the subject is PC Work and �How to do various things� and most importantly �How to get onto this site�.
Having both left the regiment at round about the same time, the two of us both joined the Stoke-on-Trent City Police (now the Staffordshire Police) and each completed 30 years service with them. John was a Sgt in C.I.D. and I was S.O.C.O. in the C.I.D. unfortunately, brother John had a severe stroke 3 years ago and sadly passed away in early 2005. At this point, I would just like to pay tribute to his memory, by highlighting all the work he did with the Scout movement in Burton-on-Trent. He was sent there on his promotion to Sgt and was awarded the B.E.M. in the New Years Honours List of 1991 in recognition of this work. He also acted as Secretary of the Burton-on-Trent Branch of the Association for 10 years, which he only gave up following his stroke.
I hope the photographs that Brian Brenchley has managed to extract from John�s and my photo albums, having received a lot of �Brian�s Treatment�, will bring back lots of happy memories to those of you who can remember that far back!
John Westwell B.E.M
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