WW2 hero's return to Normandy

Published 15 Jul 2009 14:00

A HEROIC Second World War veteran is set to return to the beaches of Normandy on an emotional trip with his grandson.

Alexander Sheekey, 84, was one of the first soldiers to land in France during the huge D-Day operation in 1944.

Now the pensioner, of Kempock Street, Gourock, has been given lottery funding to return to the battle sites.

Alexander served with the Royal Signals guards while aged just 19, below, and had the tough task of laying vital communication cables.

Alexander told the Tele: 'It"s a good opportunity to go back. I"ve returned a couple of times as I like France and I"d like to have a last look.

'We laid the communications cables to co-ordinate the air force. I was on board the landing craft a week before D-Day and was part of a team of 13 that went into France as part of the first wave.

'I served through France, Belgium and ended the war in Germany. We would lay the cables, both landlines and overhead, but there was so much activity that tanks would break the lines and we were called out most nights to get the system up and running again.

'There was 12 of us in our team, on our own, roughing it in a tent. We were just doing our jobs.

'It was really hard work but interesting too and ultimately those communication lines needed to be in place if the war effort was to be successful.'

Alexander is taking his 28 year-old grandson, David Malcolm, pictured with him, above, to Normandy later this year.

The historical journey is funded through the lottery-backed Heroes Return 2 programme.

The veteran said: 'Thanks to the grant from the lottery, I"ll be able to take my grandson over to Normandy to revisit some of the sites I saw as a 19-year-old boy. It will be a time to reflect and share my history with the younger generation of my own family.'

Grandson David added: 'We wanted to do the trip on the last anniversary but were unable to do so due to funding.

'We heard about this project and we wanted to do something to mark the 65th anniversary. The trip means a lot, not only to me but to my whole family.'

After the war, Alexander lost touch with his unit. He said: 'Unfortunately I left my unit in Normandy and was then sent to Palestine and spent my last year in the army in Gaza. I lost contact with the men I served with in Normandy as most of them were from England.'

Alison Magee, chairwoman of Big Lottery Fund Scotland, said: 'The personal accounts of tragedy and triumph that emerge through this programme are humbling when you consider how much was sacrificed during the war.

'Many of the veterans who come to us say these trips will mark their last chance to return to the battlefields of their youth."

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This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 15 Jul 09

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