Private Christopher Kershaw, along with 5 of his fellow soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb while patrolling the border of Helmand and Kandahar in their Warrior patrol vehicle. It appeared to be a old Soviet era mine used by the Taliban or IED, improvised explosive device.
The soldiers, who had only been in Afghanistan for a few weeks, were hit by a blast about 25 miles north of Helmand's capital, Lashkar Gah, at 6.30pm local time (2pm UK time) on Tuesday.Ammunition on board the Warrior ignited, causing a fierce fire to burn for many hours.
The intensity of the blaze meant rescuers could not get near the vehicle and its charred shell was not recovered to the main British base in Helmand, Camp Bastion, until the following day.
****************
Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, speaking outside the Battlesbury barracks in Warminster stated, "As their commanding officer of this tight knit family regiment, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to my incredibly brave men, and to offer my deepest condolences to their families, and to their many friends.
Stenning went on to add that Private Christopher Kershaw was a true Yorkshire Warrior..a star of the future.
Published Examiner 3/8/12
*****************
His parents, Monica and Brian Kershaw, and Mr Kershaw's fiancee, Sharon Wood came out to honor Chris.
*****************
Mrs Kershaw, of Farmhill Road, said: "He always wanted to be in the Army, ever since he was five or six-years-old. Everything he had had to be Army green and all he wanted to do was be outdoors.
"He knew the dangers of it but he just wanted to do it and it was his dream. He lived his dream right until the end."
Pte Kershaw, a former pupil of Hanson School, Swain House, had joined the 4 Para cadets at Thornbury Barracks, aged 14, and quickly forged friendships with his cadet comrades, including Paratrooper Martin Bell, of Idle, who was killed in Afghanistan last year.
Miss Wood, 45, yesterday said Pte Bell's death had affected the young soldier.
His family also revealed that Pte Kershaw had even considered leaving the Army following the death of another close friend, 20-year-old Rifleman Sheldon Steel, of Leeds, who was killed in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.
Pte Kershaw was a pallbearer when Rifleman Steel's body was repatriated to RAF Brize Norton following his death in November last year.
Mr Kershaw said: "He had had his ups and downs and that really knocked him for six.
"I think that, at that point, he was seriously thinking of coming out of the Army but then he got back down to the barracks in Warminster with all his friends he thought it through and he knew he wanted to go there."
Pte Kershaw had been flown to Afghanistan on Valentine's day and was only two weeks into his first tour of duty when he was killed.
Mrs Kershaw said: "The last time when he rang me was when he was in Dubai on his way there. He was really excited – I could hear the buzz in his voice when he was talking to me.
"We were joking and I said to him ‘don't be coming home in a wooden box'. He said, ‘I won't I'm not that stupid' and that is what has happened."
In a moving tribute to his soldiers Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, commanding officer of 3 Yorks described Pte Kershaw as a "true Yorkshire warrior" who had been marked out as a "star of the future".
Mr Kershaw, 45, of Cavendish Road, Idle, added: "We are absolutely devastated but proud of him. He was loveable, always laughing.
"He will be sadly missed."
As a youngster, Pte Kershaw had played junior rugby league for Victoria Rangers and West Bowling and had also taken up karate, before the cadets became his passion.
He also worked part-time at Bradford Industrial Museum in Eccleshill and helped his mother out as a teaching assistant at Delius special school in Bradford.
Yesterday, floral tributes and flags from the people whose lives he touched remained tied to the fence at his family home in Farmhill Road. Neighbours had lit candles in remembrance of the teenager.
One message attached to the flowers read: "True hero, never forgotten."
Another, addressed to "The fallen hero" and placed alongside a large picture of Pte Kershaw, said: "We will honour the souls that have been taken to the angels in heaven on this day."
Mrs Kershaw said: "His death has shocked everybody."
Paying tribute, Tom Megahy, associate principal at Hanson School, said: "Chris was a past student at Hanson School. We were very proud of the young man he became and the service he has given to our country.
"Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and colleagues at their tragic loss."
By Marc Meneaud
Published Bradford Telegraph & Argus 02/10/12
******************
A Sunset Vigil
The news is spread far and wide
Another comrade has sadly died
A sunset vigil upon the sand
As a soldier leaves this foreign land
We stand alone, and yet as one
In the fading light of a setting sun
We've all gathered to say goodbye
To our fallen comrade who's set to fly
The eulogy's read about their life
Sometimes with words from pals or wife
We all know when the CO's done
What kind of soldier they'd become
The padre then calls us all to pray
The bugler has Last Post to play
The cannon roars and belches flame
We will recall, with pride, their name
A minute's silence stood in place
As tears roll down the hardest face
Deafening silence fills the air
With each of us in personal prayer
Reveille sounds and the parade is done
The hero remembered, forgotten by none
They leave to start the journey back
In a coffin draped in the Union Jack
***********************
A Military funeral will be held on May 24, 2012 at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Idle, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Burial at Holy Trinity Churchyard.
The soldiers, who had only been in Afghanistan for a few weeks, were hit by a blast about 25 miles north of Helmand's capital, Lashkar Gah, at 6.30pm local time (2pm UK time) on Tuesday.Ammunition on board the Warrior ignited, causing a fierce fire to burn for many hours.
The intensity of the blaze meant rescuers could not get near the vehicle and its charred shell was not recovered to the main British base in Helmand, Camp Bastion, until the following day.
****************
Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, speaking outside the Battlesbury barracks in Warminster stated, "As their commanding officer of this tight knit family regiment, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to my incredibly brave men, and to offer my deepest condolences to their families, and to their many friends.
Stenning went on to add that Private Christopher Kershaw was a true Yorkshire Warrior..a star of the future.
Published Examiner 3/8/12
*****************
His parents, Monica and Brian Kershaw, and Mr Kershaw's fiancee, Sharon Wood came out to honor Chris.
*****************
Mrs Kershaw, of Farmhill Road, said: "He always wanted to be in the Army, ever since he was five or six-years-old. Everything he had had to be Army green and all he wanted to do was be outdoors.
"He knew the dangers of it but he just wanted to do it and it was his dream. He lived his dream right until the end."
Pte Kershaw, a former pupil of Hanson School, Swain House, had joined the 4 Para cadets at Thornbury Barracks, aged 14, and quickly forged friendships with his cadet comrades, including Paratrooper Martin Bell, of Idle, who was killed in Afghanistan last year.
Miss Wood, 45, yesterday said Pte Bell's death had affected the young soldier.
His family also revealed that Pte Kershaw had even considered leaving the Army following the death of another close friend, 20-year-old Rifleman Sheldon Steel, of Leeds, who was killed in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.
Pte Kershaw was a pallbearer when Rifleman Steel's body was repatriated to RAF Brize Norton following his death in November last year.
Mr Kershaw said: "He had had his ups and downs and that really knocked him for six.
"I think that, at that point, he was seriously thinking of coming out of the Army but then he got back down to the barracks in Warminster with all his friends he thought it through and he knew he wanted to go there."
Pte Kershaw had been flown to Afghanistan on Valentine's day and was only two weeks into his first tour of duty when he was killed.
Mrs Kershaw said: "The last time when he rang me was when he was in Dubai on his way there. He was really excited – I could hear the buzz in his voice when he was talking to me.
"We were joking and I said to him ‘don't be coming home in a wooden box'. He said, ‘I won't I'm not that stupid' and that is what has happened."
In a moving tribute to his soldiers Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, commanding officer of 3 Yorks described Pte Kershaw as a "true Yorkshire warrior" who had been marked out as a "star of the future".
Mr Kershaw, 45, of Cavendish Road, Idle, added: "We are absolutely devastated but proud of him. He was loveable, always laughing.
"He will be sadly missed."
As a youngster, Pte Kershaw had played junior rugby league for Victoria Rangers and West Bowling and had also taken up karate, before the cadets became his passion.
He also worked part-time at Bradford Industrial Museum in Eccleshill and helped his mother out as a teaching assistant at Delius special school in Bradford.
Yesterday, floral tributes and flags from the people whose lives he touched remained tied to the fence at his family home in Farmhill Road. Neighbours had lit candles in remembrance of the teenager.
One message attached to the flowers read: "True hero, never forgotten."
Another, addressed to "The fallen hero" and placed alongside a large picture of Pte Kershaw, said: "We will honour the souls that have been taken to the angels in heaven on this day."
Mrs Kershaw said: "His death has shocked everybody."
Paying tribute, Tom Megahy, associate principal at Hanson School, said: "Chris was a past student at Hanson School. We were very proud of the young man he became and the service he has given to our country.
"Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and colleagues at their tragic loss."
By Marc Meneaud
Published Bradford Telegraph & Argus 02/10/12
******************
A Sunset Vigil
The news is spread far and wide
Another comrade has sadly died
A sunset vigil upon the sand
As a soldier leaves this foreign land
We stand alone, and yet as one
In the fading light of a setting sun
We've all gathered to say goodbye
To our fallen comrade who's set to fly
The eulogy's read about their life
Sometimes with words from pals or wife
We all know when the CO's done
What kind of soldier they'd become
The padre then calls us all to pray
The bugler has Last Post to play
The cannon roars and belches flame
We will recall, with pride, their name
A minute's silence stood in place
As tears roll down the hardest face
Deafening silence fills the air
With each of us in personal prayer
Reveille sounds and the parade is done
The hero remembered, forgotten by none
They leave to start the journey back
In a coffin draped in the Union Jack
***********************
A Military funeral will be held on May 24, 2012 at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Idle, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Burial at Holy Trinity Churchyard.
Private Christopher Kershaw, along with 5 of his fellow soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb while patrolling the border of Helmand and Kandahar in their Warrior patrol vehicle. It appeared to be a old Soviet era mine used by the Taliban or IED, improvised explosive device.
The soldiers, who had only been in Afghanistan for a few weeks, were hit by a blast about 25 miles north of Helmand's capital, Lashkar Gah, at 6.30pm local time (2pm UK time) on Tuesday.Ammunition on board the Warrior ignited, causing a fierce fire to burn for many hours.
The intensity of the blaze meant rescuers could not get near the vehicle and its charred shell was not recovered to the main British base in Helmand, Camp Bastion, until the following day.
****************
Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, speaking outside the Battlesbury barracks in Warminster stated, "As their commanding officer of this tight knit family regiment, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to my incredibly brave men, and to offer my deepest condolences to their families, and to their many friends.
Stenning went on to add that Private Christopher Kershaw was a true Yorkshire Warrior..a star of the future.
Published Examiner 3/8/12
*****************
His parents, Monica and Brian Kershaw, and Mr Kershaw's fiancee, Sharon Wood came out to honor Chris.
*****************
Mrs Kershaw, of Farmhill Road, said: "He always wanted to be in the Army, ever since he was five or six-years-old. Everything he had had to be Army green and all he wanted to do was be outdoors.
"He knew the dangers of it but he just wanted to do it and it was his dream. He lived his dream right until the end."
Pte Kershaw, a former pupil of Hanson School, Swain House, had joined the 4 Para cadets at Thornbury Barracks, aged 14, and quickly forged friendships with his cadet comrades, including Paratrooper Martin Bell, of Idle, who was killed in Afghanistan last year.
Miss Wood, 45, yesterday said Pte Bell's death had affected the young soldier.
His family also revealed that Pte Kershaw had even considered leaving the Army following the death of another close friend, 20-year-old Rifleman Sheldon Steel, of Leeds, who was killed in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.
Pte Kershaw was a pallbearer when Rifleman Steel's body was repatriated to RAF Brize Norton following his death in November last year.
Mr Kershaw said: "He had had his ups and downs and that really knocked him for six.
"I think that, at that point, he was seriously thinking of coming out of the Army but then he got back down to the barracks in Warminster with all his friends he thought it through and he knew he wanted to go there."
Pte Kershaw had been flown to Afghanistan on Valentine's day and was only two weeks into his first tour of duty when he was killed.
Mrs Kershaw said: "The last time when he rang me was when he was in Dubai on his way there. He was really excited – I could hear the buzz in his voice when he was talking to me.
"We were joking and I said to him ‘don't be coming home in a wooden box'. He said, ‘I won't I'm not that stupid' and that is what has happened."
In a moving tribute to his soldiers Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, commanding officer of 3 Yorks described Pte Kershaw as a "true Yorkshire warrior" who had been marked out as a "star of the future".
Mr Kershaw, 45, of Cavendish Road, Idle, added: "We are absolutely devastated but proud of him. He was loveable, always laughing.
"He will be sadly missed."
As a youngster, Pte Kershaw had played junior rugby league for Victoria Rangers and West Bowling and had also taken up karate, before the cadets became his passion.
He also worked part-time at Bradford Industrial Museum in Eccleshill and helped his mother out as a teaching assistant at Delius special school in Bradford.
Yesterday, floral tributes and flags from the people whose lives he touched remained tied to the fence at his family home in Farmhill Road. Neighbours had lit candles in remembrance of the teenager.
One message attached to the flowers read: "True hero, never forgotten."
Another, addressed to "The fallen hero" and placed alongside a large picture of Pte Kershaw, said: "We will honour the souls that have been taken to the angels in heaven on this day."
Mrs Kershaw said: "His death has shocked everybody."
Paying tribute, Tom Megahy, associate principal at Hanson School, said: "Chris was a past student at Hanson School. We were very proud of the young man he became and the service he has given to our country.
"Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and colleagues at their tragic loss."
By Marc Meneaud
Published Bradford Telegraph & Argus 02/10/12
******************
A Sunset Vigil
The news is spread far and wide
Another comrade has sadly died
A sunset vigil upon the sand
As a soldier leaves this foreign land
We stand alone, and yet as one
In the fading light of a setting sun
We've all gathered to say goodbye
To our fallen comrade who's set to fly
The eulogy's read about their life
Sometimes with words from pals or wife
We all know when the CO's done
What kind of soldier they'd become
The padre then calls us all to pray
The bugler has Last Post to play
The cannon roars and belches flame
We will recall, with pride, their name
A minute's silence stood in place
As tears roll down the hardest face
Deafening silence fills the air
With each of us in personal prayer
Reveille sounds and the parade is done
The hero remembered, forgotten by none
They leave to start the journey back
In a coffin draped in the Union Jack
***********************
A Military funeral will be held on May 24, 2012 at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Idle, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Burial at Holy Trinity Churchyard.
The soldiers, who had only been in Afghanistan for a few weeks, were hit by a blast about 25 miles north of Helmand's capital, Lashkar Gah, at 6.30pm local time (2pm UK time) on Tuesday.Ammunition on board the Warrior ignited, causing a fierce fire to burn for many hours.
The intensity of the blaze meant rescuers could not get near the vehicle and its charred shell was not recovered to the main British base in Helmand, Camp Bastion, until the following day.
****************
Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, speaking outside the Battlesbury barracks in Warminster stated, "As their commanding officer of this tight knit family regiment, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to my incredibly brave men, and to offer my deepest condolences to their families, and to their many friends.
Stenning went on to add that Private Christopher Kershaw was a true Yorkshire Warrior..a star of the future.
Published Examiner 3/8/12
*****************
His parents, Monica and Brian Kershaw, and Mr Kershaw's fiancee, Sharon Wood came out to honor Chris.
*****************
Mrs Kershaw, of Farmhill Road, said: "He always wanted to be in the Army, ever since he was five or six-years-old. Everything he had had to be Army green and all he wanted to do was be outdoors.
"He knew the dangers of it but he just wanted to do it and it was his dream. He lived his dream right until the end."
Pte Kershaw, a former pupil of Hanson School, Swain House, had joined the 4 Para cadets at Thornbury Barracks, aged 14, and quickly forged friendships with his cadet comrades, including Paratrooper Martin Bell, of Idle, who was killed in Afghanistan last year.
Miss Wood, 45, yesterday said Pte Bell's death had affected the young soldier.
His family also revealed that Pte Kershaw had even considered leaving the Army following the death of another close friend, 20-year-old Rifleman Sheldon Steel, of Leeds, who was killed in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.
Pte Kershaw was a pallbearer when Rifleman Steel's body was repatriated to RAF Brize Norton following his death in November last year.
Mr Kershaw said: "He had had his ups and downs and that really knocked him for six.
"I think that, at that point, he was seriously thinking of coming out of the Army but then he got back down to the barracks in Warminster with all his friends he thought it through and he knew he wanted to go there."
Pte Kershaw had been flown to Afghanistan on Valentine's day and was only two weeks into his first tour of duty when he was killed.
Mrs Kershaw said: "The last time when he rang me was when he was in Dubai on his way there. He was really excited – I could hear the buzz in his voice when he was talking to me.
"We were joking and I said to him ‘don't be coming home in a wooden box'. He said, ‘I won't I'm not that stupid' and that is what has happened."
In a moving tribute to his soldiers Lieutenant Colonel Zac Stenning, commanding officer of 3 Yorks described Pte Kershaw as a "true Yorkshire warrior" who had been marked out as a "star of the future".
Mr Kershaw, 45, of Cavendish Road, Idle, added: "We are absolutely devastated but proud of him. He was loveable, always laughing.
"He will be sadly missed."
As a youngster, Pte Kershaw had played junior rugby league for Victoria Rangers and West Bowling and had also taken up karate, before the cadets became his passion.
He also worked part-time at Bradford Industrial Museum in Eccleshill and helped his mother out as a teaching assistant at Delius special school in Bradford.
Yesterday, floral tributes and flags from the people whose lives he touched remained tied to the fence at his family home in Farmhill Road. Neighbours had lit candles in remembrance of the teenager.
One message attached to the flowers read: "True hero, never forgotten."
Another, addressed to "The fallen hero" and placed alongside a large picture of Pte Kershaw, said: "We will honour the souls that have been taken to the angels in heaven on this day."
Mrs Kershaw said: "His death has shocked everybody."
Paying tribute, Tom Megahy, associate principal at Hanson School, said: "Chris was a past student at Hanson School. We were very proud of the young man he became and the service he has given to our country.
"Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and colleagues at their tragic loss."
By Marc Meneaud
Published Bradford Telegraph & Argus 02/10/12
******************
A Sunset Vigil
The news is spread far and wide
Another comrade has sadly died
A sunset vigil upon the sand
As a soldier leaves this foreign land
We stand alone, and yet as one
In the fading light of a setting sun
We've all gathered to say goodbye
To our fallen comrade who's set to fly
The eulogy's read about their life
Sometimes with words from pals or wife
We all know when the CO's done
What kind of soldier they'd become
The padre then calls us all to pray
The bugler has Last Post to play
The cannon roars and belches flame
We will recall, with pride, their name
A minute's silence stood in place
As tears roll down the hardest face
Deafening silence fills the air
With each of us in personal prayer
Reveille sounds and the parade is done
The hero remembered, forgotten by none
They leave to start the journey back
In a coffin draped in the Union Jack
***********************
A Military funeral will be held on May 24, 2012 at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Idle, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Burial at Holy Trinity Churchyard.
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