OBITUARIES become a Chartered member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers .
In his 33 years with the Royal Navy , he served on at least six major ships including the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious . He spent time in Hong Kong , Japan , Kenya ( Mombasa ), Singapore , Australia and New Zealand ; winning medals for service in the Suez Canal zone and the Malay Peninsula .
As a Weapons Electrical Officer , he had a long association with the naval training school at HMS Collingwood , first arriving there in 1955 . He also served at ASWE ( on Portsdown Hill ), at HMS Excellent ( on Whale Island , Portsmouth ) and at the Ministry of Defence in Bath .
His final appointment was as Establishment Engineer Officer at HMS Vernon , Portsmouth ; this included the rapid preparation and dispatch of the minesweepers for the Falkland Islands war .
He left the Navy in 1982 and , in the run up to his retirement , spent five years at the new Marconi Underwater Systems factory at Waterlooville setting up and then managing the site services .
James shared his life with Jean who was also from Pocklington . The pair had grown up together and married in 1954 . They had two children , Nicholas and Christopher . They enjoyed a long and happy life together , celebrating their 67th wedding anniversary in August 2021 .
James enjoyed his time away at sea but missed family life . Whenever he was at home , he loved nothing more than spending time with the children building boats and repairing cars . He had a passion for caravanning and Volvo cars and went on many caravan holidays with the family exploring Holland , Norway and the Alps . He also acquired a day yacht christened ‘ Vogel ’, the Dutch for ‘ bird ’, which he took on regular trips around the Solent in all weathers !
In retirement , he remained very active . As Treasurer for Wallington Village Community , he led efforts to raise £ 250,000 for a new Village Hall . He was Chair of Wallington Village Community Association from 1994 to 1997 . He looked after the village Lunch club and the Neighbourhood Watch scheme and took part in the village Wine Circle .
He embraced change and the march of progress but also wanted to protect Fareham ’ s heritage . This led to him becoming Chair of the Fareham Society for three years and in recognition of his efforts , he was voted Fareham Borough Council ’ s 2019 Citizen of the Year .
He and Jean continued to explore , travelling to various parts of the world including some of those he visited with his ships . From Scotland to the New Forest , they would often be found on a remote campsite enjoying the outdoors .
In 2014 James had a stroke and in his usual relentless way , set about rebuilding his mobility and speech with the help of the Stroke Association amongst others .
He kept in touch with old and new naval friends via the Portsmouth Retired Naval Officers Association ( PRNOA ) and through his commitment to St Ann ’ s Church in Portsmouth dockyard .
He also kept in touch with many of those that he joined Dartmouth with in 1949 as well as those he came to HMS Collingwood with in the 1950s .
It was fitting that his last event at HMS Collingwood was Trafalgar night in 2021 where he was honoured to be sat at the top table .
He had all the attributes expected of a Royal Naval Officer ; he was strong , determined , at times fearsome , stubborn , decisive and always took responsibility . He also had a cheeky sense of humour , he listened , was selfless , kind , generous and above all went out of his way to help .
( Nick Hall )
John Richard Major ( 64-71 ) grew up mainly in Bridlington with his parents and older sister Susan . As his father was a captain in the Merchant Navy based in the Persian Gulf , John spent some time in Bahrain prior to attending Pocklington School .
John was a boarder at Lyndhurst from the age of 11 going on to Dolman House for his senior years . His experiences at school were rich and varied . He arrived able to swim like a fish and enjoyed all aspects of sports . Many friendships were nurtured and lasted all his life .
On leaving school , John trained as an English teacher but didn ’ t choose that career path . He became a technical author for engineering firm Ferranti in Wales and then moved on to York where he worked as a systems analyst for Portakabin until he retired , aged 60 . He chose early retirement to follow his passion of walking in beautiful surroundings . He was already a qualified mountain leader , and he found his niche with a holiday company where he led walks at home and abroad . This was an ideal retirement package for John .
John married Jenny in 1977 and they were together for many years . When they moved to York , amateur dramatics featured greatly in their lives and John was the leading man in all the Poppleton Players ’ productions . He was funny , talented and the first to have learned all his lines !
John was an action man . He was very much at home on the ski slopes , playing tennis or badminton , cycling , or sailing around his favourite Ionian Sea , but most of all he followed the call of the hills . He loved the Scottish lochs and mountains and when lying in the heather atop a Munro was known to say he had never felt happier !
In the months following John ’ s cancer diagnosis in 2019 , he took his partner , Sheila , on a tour of the grounds of Pocklington School , reminiscing as he went along . He still had vivid , happy memories of his time there .
His resilience and courage in the face of his illness was palpable and his ability to keep going was at times breathtaking . He will be truly missed by many .
( Sheila Mackenzie )
Matthew Pimm ( 97-04 ) was born at York District Hospital on 25 July 1986 , the youngest of four children . He entered a loving home on Barmby Road in Pocklington surrounded by family , including his parents Colin and Ann , his siblings Nick ( 88- 95 ), Sarah ( 95-97 ), and Andrew ( 96-02 ), and his grandmother Mary (“ Gran ”).
Matty as he was known by the family , began his schooling at his mum ’ s nursery , Wolds Pre-School , and unbeknown to him at the time , one of the other nursery children , Amy Burrows , was later to become the love of his life . Matthew went on to Pocklington Infants and Junior schools and then Pocklington School , enjoying school life and being a popular member of his class .
Matthew threw himself into many hobbies , including football , tennis , golf , swimming , skateboarding , snowboarding , playing the drums in bands , making films with his cousin Danny , and more recently running , martial arts , and working out . He was artistic and very creative and had a keen interest in technology . He enjoyed travelling and loved family holidays with his many relatives , which included lots of trips to France , Germany , Scotland , Somerset , and Wales .
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