Monday Is The 100Th Birthday..........

[10ClarionSt]

...of my friend Rolf Monteith, a veteran of WW2 and the Arctic Convoys. See here:

https://www.camruss.com/en/events/remembering-the-past-for-the-future/

Rolf is looking forward to receiving the "proverbial telegram" from HRH King Charles. In 2020, Rolf was awarded the Ushkov Medal by the Russian Govt, which they will still give to veterans of the Arctic Convoys if any are still alive and haven't received one. Rolf should have been presented with his medal by Vladimir Putin, but due to Covid, that didn't happen, and Rolf just received it in the post. Regardless of what you read about Putin, he was/is a great admirer of the Arctic Convoy veterans. 

So, Happy Birthday Rolf. A great time will be had by all at the RWY in Plymouth this Sunday.👑

[Zacs-Master]

10Cs, did you know that the 100th birthday 'telegram' doesn't come automatically?

https://www.royal.uk/sites/default/files/media/birthday_form_with_faqs_2.pdf

[THECORBYLOON]

I was going to post the same.

When I worked on the DWP pensions section, we would get notifications from a central section when local claimants were approaching their 100th/105th+ birthdays.

We had to verify the date of birth, the address and arrange for a visiting officer to visit the person to confirm the fact that the message would be, "appreciated".

That information would be sent to the section but we would then need to set a date just before the birthday to confirm the person's circumstances hadn't, "changed".

That meant phoning a close relative or person to establish they hadn't died in the meantime.

In those days there were no smartphones for a reminder so it meant letting my boss know and putting big notes on my trays, desk and computer screen.

[10ClarionSt]

Thanks for the replies. No, I didn't know that the "telegram" doesn't come automatically, but knowing Rolf, I don't think he will be too bothered if he doesn't get one. Anyway, Rolf is well connected and actually served with Prince Phillip at one time during WW2. He refers to this in his autobigraphy called Last Man Standing. 

There are plenty of videos of Rolf on You Tube. He was one of the veterans that were transported to Normandy by The Black Cab charity, in 2015. They do a wonderful job in supporting military veterans.