Gerry Chester, 1922 - 2019

Grim news.

An absolute gent, & a bastion of this site for years.
Ran one of the finest websites & tributes to his regiment I've ever seen from a veteran, as well as being truly active in events relating to their memory.
Not just the Regiment, but the Churchill tank, his old vehicle, which he obviously retained so much respect & even affection for 70 years after service. Almost everything decent you read on Churchills seems to have had some input from Gerry.

Always answered a question, no matter how obscure (with, I'm told, a real twinkle in his eye when in person).

We'll miss him.
Anyone with an interest in The North Irish Horse will miss him more.
The history of armoured vehicles takes a blow.
And his family must feel the loss of such an interesting & decent man more than any of the above. My sincere condolences to them.

Raise a glass to him, chaps.
I certainly will be.

Quis Separabit.



A now rather saddened,
~A

 

D has tagged his personal summary of his service on here.
gerry chester | WW2Talk
north irish horse - personal accounts | WW2Talk

(The numbering is mixed up by the tagging order, but easy enough to follow.)

 

Sad news. Glad I had the chance to interact with him & the other Veterans on this forum.

 

Thanks Ron for sharing this sad news with the forum.

From the very first time Gerry and I exchanged messages - a relative of mine had also served with NIH - it was clear he was one of the most generous, decent and helpful people I’d encountered. I’m sure I was not the first or the last to benefit from his research and his patient indulgence.

His extensive commemorative work covering both World Wars - now in the Imperial War Museum - as well as his posts on this forum stand testament not only to his enthusiasm but also to his determination to keep alive the memory of the North Irish Horse and all those who served with it. And woe betide anyone who messed about with the history of the NIH or the Churchill tank! His book reviews could have a ‘forensic’ quality.

I’m sure many others reading this will have felt the same sadness I did when first reading Ron’s words. But, the more I thought about Gerry today the more I found myself smiling. Ron described Gerry as a lovely man. And that is exactly how I found him to be when I met him. Lovely can be such a dull adjective yet Gerry was anything but dull. In person, the twinkle in his eye was obvious from the get-go: whether he was talking about his father’s advice, courting his late wife, his experiences in the North Irish Horse, work after the war or meeting up with German veterans. Many of his stories held a lesson for me, not the least of which was to find some joy in the things I do and to just "try and get along" with others.

I’m very grateful and honoured to have met him and treasure the book he presented to me during our last meeting - 6th Guards Tank Brigade, Guardsmen in Churchill Tanks. It was typical of him to encourage a shared interest.



Gerry made me smile, a lot, no mean feat. Thanks to the posts on here and to some shared stories, he will continue to make me smile.
Crimes and Punishment - Military Style

My sincere condolences to his family.
QS

7947216 Corporal Arthur Gerald (Gerry) CHESTER, North Irish Horse, Italy, MiD