1923-2023

Kate on the day she married William. William was born 13 January 1897 in Semley, Wiltshire; his father was from Tisbury, Wiltshire and his mother was from Odstock, Wiltshire. Kate was born 4 December 1900 in St Andrew’s, Battersea, London; her father was from Frampton Sapperton, Gloucestershire and her mother was from Chelsea, London. They married 17 February 1923 in Southampton, Hampshire. My grandparents.

A sad day. An amazing woman, an extraordinary life, devoted to service.

So sad posting this, as my dear old Dad passed away early in the morning on Friday 10th May. So this is a tribute to both Mum and Dad for the Sunday challenge - Mothers. I am so grateful to both my parents for the love and opportunities they gave me. I wish they could still be here, and will love them forever. xxxxxxx

William Charles Harry Hibberd 1924-1944 of Southampton, Hampshire, England, my mother's older brother, in memory of Uncle Bill. D Day 70th anniversary 2014. Born 11 September 1924. Married 20 October 1943. D Day landing 6 June 1944. KIA 13 August 1944 Falaise Gap, Normandy. Bulldozer driver in the Royal Engineers who arrived in Normandy in the first assault on 'D' day. Extract from letter to his wife Joyce, dated 4 July 1944, one month after surviving the D Day landing 6 June 1944. “..Yes dearest it certainly will be lovely to settle down to a happy married life again after all this…Yes dear I did land with the first assault and I got through safe and sound as you can tell…Thank everybody at home for all the luck and give them my very fondest love also tell them to keep smiling…I have changed my address so much that I am not getting my letters regular…I haven’t heard from Mum yet. I expect her letters have been held up somewhere. So I will wait patiently for them to arrive Eh! honey But if you go up there give her my very best love won’t you. Thank you my love. I think I told you before darling I am not sure though. But Mr Churchill and General Smuts see us off from England when we left. Quite a send off Eh! dear…” Aged just 19, he was killed in action on the 13 August 1944 during the break-out into the Falaise Gap in Normandy. (Letter from Army Captain in first three comments.) Son of Kate and William, husband of Joyce, brother of Barbara, June and Grace. The Battle of the Falaise Pocket, fought during the Second World War from 12–21 August 1944, was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy. Taking its name from the pocket around the town of Falaise within which Army Group B, consisting of the German Seventh and Fifth Panzer Armies, became encircled by the advancing Western Allies, the battle is also referred to as the Falaise Gap after the corridor which the Germans sought to maintain to allow their escape. The battle resulted in the destruction of the bulk of Germany's forces west of the River Seine and opened the way to Paris and the German border. Wikipedia. At the time of D Day, my father was in Italy, having been at Monte Cassino and previously in North Africa. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, 26 Armoured Brigade Workshop Company, 6th Armoured Division. He met my mother back in England after the war ended. My mother is the bridesmaid next to her brother Bill in the 1943 wedding photo.

Photo of a vintage photo, with a friend, at West Wellow in Hampshire, England, where my parents had a few acres and a cottage on the edge of the New Forest. We had pigs, chickens and a cat. A wonderful place to spend my early years, mostly with Mum and her sister. Dad worked in Southampton, which was not far to travel. It must have been on his motorbike at the time, as I don't think he had a car until mid 60s. Wearing my sun hat. Clearly neither of us were particularly happy about being in front of a camera :-) I love this photo. The colours are pretty authentic, compared to the original photo. Sunday challenge... ageing. This photo was taken in the 50s, so I really don't look like this any more :-) However I do have a very similar hat... see comments for a photo in January 2019

Tribute to the Jumbo Jet… Lost in the 70s… Faded photos from our trip to South Africa from London in November 1975. We then lived in South Africa for seven years. Prompted by... this news... Qantas Boeing 747 aircraft takes farewell tour over Canberra, Brisbane and Sydney By Isaac Nowroozi 17th July 2020 abc.net.au The plane that made air travel accessible for many Australians for the first time is heading into retirement, flying one last victory lap before it goes. Qantas's last Boeing 747 took wing from Canberra on Friday giving admirers one more view from above over the national capital. The "queen of the skies" was the flagship of the national carrier's fleet since the first jumbo jet was bought in 1971, but the planes were grounded in the wake of COVID-19, and then decommissioned. British Airways fast-tracks retirement of iconic Boeing 747 jumbo jet Fleet of 31 aircraft will not return to service in move accelerated by downturn in air travel… Tanya Powley and Peggy Hollinger in London 17th July ft.com What Happened To South African Airways’ Boeing 747 Aircraft? By Andreas Kruger October 14, 2019 simpleflying.com SAA took delivery of its first Boeing 747 aircraft in 1971, the same year as El Al. The 747 saw over 30 years’ service in the fleet of the South African national carrier before the last aircraft was retired in 2007. Having flown 28 of the famous 747s during its history, SAA has leased, sold, stored, or written off its entire fleet.

Mum at Fish River Canyon. One of our most memorable holidays. Trip from Cape Town in South Africa, driving though the Namib Desert to Windhoek and Swakopmund. South West Africa now Namibia. The Fish River Canyon is the largest canyon in Africa, as well as the second most visited tourist attraction in Namibia. It features a gigantic ravine, in total about 100 miles (160 km) long, up to 27 km wide and in places almost 550 meters deep. The Fish River is the longest interior river in Namibia. It cuts deep into the plateau which is today dry, stony and sparsely covered with hardy drought-resistant plants. The river flows intermittently, usually flooding in late summer; the rest of the year it becomes a chain of long narrow pools. At the lower end of the Fish River Canyon, the hot springs resort of Ai-Ais is situated. Wikipedia Converted from Slide.

1. Hobart Harbour, Tasmania, Australia , 2. The Quay, Ferry and Bridge , 3. The Bounty sails past the Sydney Opera House , 4. Russell Bay of Islands , 5. Big Buddha, Hong Kong , 6. Hong Kong Harbour Lighters, Cranes and Tug Boat , 7. Île de la Cité, Paris , 8. Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile , 9. Hôtel de Ville, Paris , 10. Urquhart Castle, Loch Ness , 11. Edinburgh Castle , 12. Ian at Land's End in Cornwall , 13. Plymouth Hoe and Waterfront, Devon, England , 14. Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head, Honolulu , 15. Whitsunday Passage , 16. 1986 Piazza San Pietro Vatican City , 17. 1986 View of Forte Falcone, Portoferraio and Villa dei Mulini , 18. 1986 Sailing on the Solent, Needles, Isle of Wight , 19. 1982 Statue of Liberty , 20. 1982 Rio de Janeiro Sugar Loaf , 21. 1982 Rio de Janeiro Corcovado , 22. 1982 Niagara , 23. 1982 Chateau Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada , 24. c1981 Lord Milner Hotel, Matjiesfontein, South Africa , 25. 1980 The Fort, oldest building in Windhoek, South West Africa now Namibia , 26. c1980 Table Mountain from the Docks, Cape Town, South Africa , 27. 1975 Fort George, Scotland , 28. 1972 Monaco and Monte Carlo , 29. c1950 William & Kate Hibberd at Hampton Court , 30. 1923 William Hibberd and Kate Poole Wedding Click on any of the individual links above for a larger view or link below to the set which has a few more. www.flickr.com/photos/gilleverett/sets/72157632092545686/...

The wind was quite strong at Maratho Island, rocking us and gusting all night Force 6-8. We went a couple of miles across to Port Augusta on Arki and tied up to the quay for the day. Relaxed, walking, swimming and reading. Numerous boats arrived later in the day, very cosmopolitan, French, German and English. About 9 boats in a very small harbour. Only two Sunsail boats, ourselves and the other Oceanis 350 'Boras'. Dinner at the local Taverna was very good – traditional Greek fare, fresh red snapper, cleaned on the beach. Tzatziki, garlic sauce, greek salad, meat balls, and fresh bread, washed down by white Makedonikus wine. A good night’s sleep in spite of the cockerels who started calling at 4.30am and carried on for another 5 hours. Sailing with Jen and Pete in the Islands of the Dodecanese, Greece. This was on an Oceanis 350 'Notos' with Sunsail, out of Kos in September 1994.