23252915 Brian Charles COLE was born on 17 September 1939 in Hove. He moved to Dover during his childhood, and served in the Grenadier Guards during the 1950s until around 1965 when he was discharged.

His granddaughter (Millie) said that Brian looked back fondly at his travels with the Army, having been stationed at places like Germany, Libya, Jamaica, South America and British Guiana. He often told her stories of his service, mainly rum fuelled activities that paint a picture of brotherhood and solidarity, and always brought a smile to his face when he would retell said storys. Back in the UK, Brian was stationed at Woolwich, Caterham and his personal favourite, Windsor - although Millie doesn’t believe they were in that order.

Brian and Millie's grandmother meet in Dover in 1958 and got married soon after.

In 1966, Brian and his wife moved back to Dover with their ever-growing family and moved into the house in which they would share together until Millie's grandmother died in May 2013.

After retiring from the Army, Brian would try his hand at anything manual, work security, and he was even a postman at one point. He found his place was with the Dover Harbour Board, where he found like-minded ex-servicemen. Whilst working with the Harbour Board, Brian found his love of being a union man. He worked there for years until he retired.

Brian and his wife had six children and countless grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and even a great-great-grandson who was born in 2023. Family was always at the centre of Brian's life, whether you were a blood relative or simply someone who had fallen on hard times.

After the death of his wife, in 2013, Brian was a bit lost. He was left in charge of the house for the first time ever, and was also left to care for a teenage girl. Millie says that he took it in his stride, never faltering, so for the last ten years it was her and her grandfather learning their new way of life.

As Brian grew older, his health started to deteriorate, but he still carried on, never asking for help. The last 4 years were when time caught up with him, he had lung conditions, and he was going blind, but every time a letter from the Grenadier Guards Association arrived in the post, he made sure that Millie read it to him.

Added on: 03 July 2023, 11:39