Childhood friend and businesses unite to create fitting memorial to Grantham soldier
Thanks to the dedication of a childhood friend, and the support of local businesses, a soldier killed in Belfast 27 years ago is being remembered with a beautifully crafted bench.
Growing up together on Harlaxton Road, friends Nick Peacock and Glenn Wormall were inseparable, right up until Nick joined the army as a teenager.
Sadly, on January 31, 1989, while on duty in Belfast, Nick walked past a drainpipe bomb on the Falls Road, and died later in hospital from his injuries, aged just 20.
Glenn has never forgotten his childhood friend, and on walking into Grantham business Roll and Scroll for a poppy holder, he had the idea of raising money to pay for a commemorative bench in honour of Nick.
Instead, within just a matter of weeks, Roll and Scroll alongside fellow local businesses Pentangle Fabrications, Pentangle Engineering, Arraquip and Mascot Powder Coating, had all worked together in order to create a striking seat, free of charge.
“I can’t believe how much support we have had. It has been brilliant. It restores your faith in humanity,” says Glenn. “And it shows how many people remember Nick. He was a gentle giant, a big lad, and nobody had a bad word to say about him.”
Furthermore, yesterday (Thursday) Glenn was able to take Nick’s father David to see the bench, in what was of course a very emotional moment. “He couldn’t speak when he saw it,” added Glenn.
He also plans to show the bench to Nick’s mum, and has invited members of his regiment, the 2nd Battalion of The Royal Anglian Regiment, known as ‘The Poachers’, to see it too.
In an apt twist of fate, Glenn’s son Shaun ended up in the same regiment as Nick, and has since returned from a successful tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Delighted with the memorial, which has also received a huge response on social media, Glenn is now in talks with South Kesteven District Council about getting Nick’s bench installed on St Peter’s Hill in the centre of Grantham.
“There are other war memorials there. As a well-known Grantham lad, I think it is only right that his memorial should be there too,” said Glenn.