59 Squadron, Huddersfield

Earlier this summer, cadets and staff from the Squadron helped out with the running of the Honley Show, as Cpl Peter Holdsworth explains.

“On Saturday 14 June the annual Honley Agricultural Show was held in Farnley Tyas, the squadron has helped out at this event for a few years now and this year had sole responsibility for car-parking for the entire weekend, Huddersfield and Holmfirth Squadron’s teamed up to cover this task. In order to set up for the Saturday and make sure everything ran smoothly over 40 Cadets and NCOs where taken to the show ground on the Friday night and stayed all the way through until Sunday to help with the dismantling and packing away of the tents and equipment after the event. On the Friday night we began by erecting the Staff’s sleeping quarters in the form of an old Army 12 x 12 tent, then a few of the NCOs were taken off at this point to begin placing a few directional signs for the car parking the next day. When all this was done we all had a chance to chill out relax and cook some food before a relatively early night so we’d be up bright and early the next day.

After an early rise and a swift breakfast the cadets and NCOs where divided into teams to carry out the necessary work for the day, the roads surrounding the show ground had to be coned off to prevent parking and traffic congestion and the rest of the signs had to be erected. At about 10o’clock visitors began arriving and it was all hands to the pumps to get the cars parked, several million pounds worth of metal where parked with relative ease and little or no complaining by a dedicated team of clued in people all working together to help each other, finally the supply of cars to park dried up and free time was given. Later in the evening an order was taken to the local takeaway for massive numbers of pizza’s and burgers, which turned into a disaster when pizza’s where discovered to be missing, finally the evening meal had been sorted out and a game of rounders was played, followed by 22-a-side, minimum rules, inter-squadron football (a draw) everyone was finally bedded down.

Another early rise on Sunday was followed by several hours hard work dismantling the show ground emptying bins etc. Finally everyone got to go home, exhausted but all happy and proud of the weekend’s work.”