Hunstanton floods January 1953 anniversary, USAF airmen Reis Leming and Freeman A Kilpatrick - Lynn News Turnstone column

Turnstone by John Maiden

In November 2012 the USAF 67th Special Operations Squadron was invited by Hunstanton Town Council to celebrate the Squadron’s 60th anniversary by unveiling a sign on the main footpath through the town’s Esplanade Gardens in honour of the Squadron’s most famous son, Reis Leming.

This act of remembrance was inspired by RAF Flight Sergeant Mark Service, the official historian of the 67th.

I have always been very pleased that Mark came across my name, when searching for a Hunstanton ‘Historical’ Society. At the time I was a member of the Civic Society committee and an elected town councillor.

It was in this capacity that I worked with Mark and colleagues from both the council and the Civic Society to restore and strengthen the special relationship between our townsfolk and the USAF, dating back to the 1950s.

This was made possible by the fact that the 67th, which came into being at nearby RAF Sculthorpe in 1952, is currently based at RAF Mildenhall.

There can be little doubt that the emergence of the ‘RAF Sculthorpe Heritage Centre’, under the inspirational leadership of Ian Brown, is playing an important role in bringing together people whose lives were changed forever by the catastrophic floods of January 31, 1953.

This was highlighted by some amazing reunions over the last weekend of January. Take for example the connection between Jackie Hartley, the celebrant at the commemoration on Sunday 29, and Alex Kilpatrick.

Jackie is the daughter of Joyce Stubbins who was saved from the floods by Alex’s father – Freeman A Kilpatrick. Sadly, Jackie’s mother, Joyce, lost her father as well as a younger brother and sister.

Last Wednesday, Jackie sent me an email in which she wrote as follows: “Well, what a weekend that was!

“Thank you so much for all you did to make it possible for me to be part of this year’s commemoration.

“I’m still processing all that went on, and all the people I met. Apart from meeting Alex, the most significant one for me was meeting the journalist that interviewed my Mum on the 50th anniversary of the floods.

“He cleverly and miraculously unlocked her story.

“He said that he still has the tapes of the interview and that he is going to try and digitise them for me. I can’t imagine hearing her voice again…and I still can’t get over the sequence of events since chatting to you at the 67th Squadron’s 70th anniversary. So much has been ‘put to bed’ for me, and it feels good.

“So thank you again and I hope it’s not too long before our paths cross again.

“Would you please also pass on my thanks to the committee that arranged the whole thing, it really was faultless.”