Roll of Honour

Colin Reid

God recently decided He needed another Airborne Engineer and called up Colin in early February 2010, shortly after his 74th birthday.
Colin was born and educated in South Queensferry. On leaving school he served an apprenticeship as an electrician and in the evening worked as a projectionist in the local cinema. He was a keen boxer, fighting out of Sparta in Edinburgh as a welterweight although you would never have guessed his fighting weight in later life! Boxing was to remain a passion throughout his life.

Amongst all this Colin found time to join 2 Troop of 300 Sqn, 131 Para RE. Unfortunately work and family commitments restricted his service to three years. Two of those work commitments were as foreman electrician on the construction of the Forth and Severn Bridges. During his watch at the Forth Bridge some dignitary arrived and our Colin took a dislike to him. No surprise then when the lift bringing the dignitary and his party down from the South tower broke down. Equally no surprise that it took some time to get it fixed.

He then went to Italy to work before returning to South Queensferry to establish his own business. On being widowed he retired. On getting remarried five years later he set up in business again. He was at work the week before his death and was also coaching at his local boxing club.

Colin was an active and stalwart member of the Scotland Branch. It was him who organised our abseil down the Forth Rail Bridge and he arranged our annual golf tournament where he — as a good host should - made a habit of coming second. A photo recording this is in the last edition of the Journal. His popularity was well reflected in the AEA attendance at his funeral where six of us flanked the hearse on the journey from the church to the cemetery. Some membership changed but another party of six bore his coffin to the graveside where our comrades joined us. Farewell friend.