THIS GREAT MAN ,I’ve known john since 1984 and from the very first time that I met him you could tell that he was an absolute gentleman , everybody and I mean everybody says the same thing about him when they have met him , he talks to random strangers on the bus , the train ,when he was out walking , he would go around the football pitch when he was watching Jake play as a kid and you would see him chatting away to the parents of other kids  ( obviously telling everyone how many goals Jake had scored that season so far )   Such a proud grandad  !!
 he would be immaculately dressed in shirt and tie every day, clean shaven, and then he would top the look off with a smart hat and war medals pinned smartly onto his jacket. they don’t make them like him anymore. He was a very proud man . if there is such a thing as the perfect father in law then he was it, always there anytime that I’ve needed him for anything, he had time for everybody.
                                      NO words can really describe what I feel for john
 He was an amazing person loved by all, respected by all, he will be remembered forever

One of my favourite memories was when john was father Christmas at the fire station Christmas party in  1998 , just brilliant .Jake was nearly 3 ,myself and green watch had to sort out the party that year ,it was the year that the co-op living store was closing so we went to scrounge all of their Christmas decorations ,we made about 10 trips in a fire engine and a storage vehicle to collect everything that they had . in October we started building an epic grotto and transformed the fire station into a WINTER WONDERLAND, it was amazing by the time we had finished we were ready for the big Christmas party where there were over 100 kids and their parents as well .
John had already been a father Christmas at living so he was perfect for the job ,on the big day we dressed him up in full Santa outfit ,we had also arranged special transportation to bring him in for the big entrance into the station , we had a milk float that was painted up to look like a fire engine that used to be sent to charity events , we decorated it in tinsel and baubles and fixed a reindeer to the front of it to finish off the look .i designated peter thommo as the official driver and he and john set off for a tour around Charing cross and Birkenhead town centre ringing the bell as they went off , the kids and adults never knew what we had planned when santa arrived with his sack full of toys on his back ,
As Santa arrived on the fire engine ,a robber dressed in traditional stripey jumper and mask stole the toys and ran into the training tower , Santa chased after him and they were both out of sight for about 30 seconds when all of a sudden they kept appearing out of different windows and it looked like a scene from a silent movie , this went on for a few minutes until santa finally appeared at the top floor window and threw a rope out and then abseiled all the way down with the sack of toys safe in his arms , everyone was amazed and they were all saying how amazing the colonel was at his age abseiling out of the window . we had a little bit of help and a Santa stunt double as we had an army sergeant  waiting on the top floor to swap places with john .Everybody was clapping and cheering ,jake was amazed at santa , we were amazed at santa ,

his grandad was amazing ,
 HE KNEW IT
WE KNEW IT

EVERYONE KNEW  IT  !

 it was brilliant to watch and people still talk about it now to this day. Blag security duly arrived and arrested the robber and santa made his way into the station grotto ready to hand toys out to the kids.
SANTA HAD SAVED CHRISTMAS
this was no ordinary santa claus , this was the colonels version of santa claus .
JAKE is 25 now and he now knows that his grandad was santa that year but we haven’t told him that it was an army sergeant that abseiled down the outside of the tower and not his grandad but it wouldn’t matter now anyway because he knows his grandad , my father in law ,the colonel is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING he always has been .

GOD BLESS THE COLONEL

THE GREATEST FATHER IN LAW EVER . XXX