Cynthia Pankhurst
spoke the following words that she wrote
herself, very eloquently to the congregation at her
husband David's funeral service.:
|
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming to pay your respects to my husband David. David was born on December 2nd 1942 and was brought up in Kendray by his grandmother whom he loved. He was a taggy lad and was a joker and an harmless scallywag. he loved life to the full and often got into scrapes like riding a bike with no tyres or saddle. He got caught walking on the railway lines, fined two bob and a clip round ear hole off his grandmother. When he left school at fifteen he went to work at Cortonwood colliery, His grandmother would call upstairs saying " Clogs going down street". The cheeky sod would say " Put mine with them". But there was another side of him, He would go with his grandmother to lay people out and carry all her tackle. I would have loved to have met her, she was the kingpin of his life. He entered the army on the advice of the local magistrate, so his 'birthday' was in October because he was too young, We used to laugh saying, he had more birthdays than the queen. I bet the K.O.Y.L.I did not know what had hit them when he arrived. When they were in Borneo I think him and someone else were asked to clear some of the jungle. they used matches instead of machetes, it was a graveyard 'Oops' David served in Malaya, Borneo, Aden and Northern Ireland, i met David just after he had been to Aden. I went to work in the NAAFI, we were married just 92 days later on the 28th may 1966, that is why today is so special. The joking never stopped like the time there was an M.P Land rover and Caravan ready for the Shrewsbury show it changed colour overnight. In the words of the insurers it were a 'Write off'. When our son John was born he changed completely, He was so proud of him and took him off for walks from the time he was in his pram. Right through until David could not walk far, John offered to take him out in the wheelchair. So spud replied "Ay and let me go at the top of Sackup lane ?. David left the army when John was 13 months old and went to work at Wolstanton Colliery, but missed the Army life. So after about 10 months he re enlisted. This time in the Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry, the jokes went on there, like when we were posted to Berlin, David and a friend had bike races on Johns three wheeled triang. After our daughter Elizabeth was born he and John got drunk as skunks, and David left him in the bar. Someone put John on his fathers shoulders and then followed him home in case he dropped him. David was a 'Real Hands on' father and could cook if he had to, but don't ask him to make porridge, You could concrete paths with it., It became a standing joke in our house. When we came home to Kendray David would then talk about his childhood to his children and keep them entertained making rhymes up and pulling faces. But he also taught them respect to their elders which he was taught to do. David went to Ferry Riddings to work, he
was there a number of years, right up until he finished work through
ill health in 1985. It took him a long time to adjust to staying
at home all the time. David was happiest when the school holidays was
on , So John and him could go to Scout Dyke fishing, or as I would say
" Teach maggots to swim" David would be sat in a Rocking chair fishing
and usually fell to sleep. |
The intellectual rights of the aforesaid documents is the sole property of
Cynthia Pankhurst
and should not be copied in any form, without the permission of Cynthia
Pankhurst.
"Copyright Les Parkin © 2008. All rights reserved."