Well, we did the parade outside the Birmingham City Hall. The standard came down and we marched off - 35 (South Midland) Signal Regiment (V) are in effect no more (although on paper they remain until the end of March next year!).
After the parade and a curry many of the regiment went to the Birmingham City game to support their 'Armed Forces Day', raise money for 'Help for Heroes' (HfH) and be subjected to Birmingham Vs Bolton. A game that left an awful lot to be desired if I'm honest (and I always am sadly - gets me into so much trouble).
City lost 2 - 1 but HfH won by about thirteen thousand pounds, so a good result at the end of the day.
What saddened me was that some of those who knew of our demise were scathing and extremely sarcastic about the fact that we could 'celebrate' and hold a parade on the last day of the regiment's existence. They couldn't understand how we could pile off to the football ground and just 'carry on'. But this is the hallmark of a great regiment and the very reason the TA exists.
Rather than become embittered as the government make drastic cuts to balance their books and negative, this regiment put the needs of others before themselves - this is what members of the forces do - read your papers and have a thought and prayer for those who by so doing will be returning in boxes on the aircraft leaving Afghanistan.
It's called 'selfless commitment' - putting the needs of others before your own feelings or best interests. This wasn't a combat situation and there was little danger of death but the mechanism and the hallmark is the same. When the fan is hit and the chips are down, the British Army does what it is trained to do - the right thing.
35 SIG REGT (V) did that and folds its uniform with no small degree of pride in 43 years of a job well done.
Certa Cito!
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