“It is with deep regret that I have to report that Last night Tuesday 8th November our Branch President Mr Alan Frankland passed away peacefully in Redcar. Funeral details will be announced in due course.

Alan was an absolute gentleman, loved by everyone, a great family man and a stalwart for this branch and the Royal British Legion generally. He loved his role within the branch and worked tirelessly for the legion and the Poppy Appeal. Only a few years ago he swam at Redcar Swimming Pool the equivalent of the English Channel to raise money for the appeal. He was always thinking of ways to raise funds.

He attended our monthly branch meeting only a couple of weeks ago and pulled us up because one of our Standards was the wrong way round, so he was still at the forefront of the branch to the very end. He loved meeting people and was so easy to get on with, he made an impression on everyone he met, he will certainly be missed by this branch. He was a quiet man but made it his job to ensure we did things correctly and he was the first person to thank others for what work they did.

Our thoughts at this time go out to his family and they will certainly miss him. It was an honour for us all to have met him and to have worked alongside him. We salute him and will honour him as we do. "We will remember him”.

Eric Howden BEM 

Chairman Redcar Branch Royal British Legion