Memories of Jim – Eddy Foster I met up with Jim as a Deep Sea Scout whilst we were Navy apprentices at HMS Collingwood, Fareham. We were training in electronics at Collingwood from 1965 to 1968. Jim was always jovial and light hearted, seeing the best in every day, even when the course work was proving tough. At spring bank holiday weekends, the Deep Sea Scouts would go to Brownsea Island, with some 50 other Rovers and Rangers, to work on the Scout campsite and accommodation building called Villano. This was always great fun and we achieved some challenging tasks. Also remembering having a week on a Narrow Boat on the Grand Union Canals. See the poor-quality photo. Jim is taking up the rear with a pole to repel boarders or to stop the narrow boat hitting the lock gates! Jim moved on from the Navy to enjoy life and take up new challenges at a paper mill and then on to keep the streets of The City safe. A number of us are still working on the scout campsite on Brownsea Island and have fond memories of those early days. Barry & Maggie Easton Corke, John Attree, Tim Green, Janet Cook recall Jim working on Villano and Dave Gregory from the Porstmouth Crew.

Thank you for setting up this memorial to Alan James. We hope that you find it a positive experience developing the site and that it becomes a place of comfort and inspiration for you to visit whenever you want or need to.

I am I and you are you, whatever we were to each other that we still are. Speak to me in the easy way which you always used. Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight? Life means all that it ever meant, it is the same as it ever was.