Company History - p5

The 1980's

The Eighties saw the start of a steady decline in the popularity of the BB and uniformed organisations as a whole. The membership of our company dropped from the mid 80's down to around 55, this was still quite a good substantial number.

The Anchor Boys' staff team at this time was made up of Margaret Allen, Susan Holley and Theresa Strachan.

• Lt. Theresa Strachan joined in 1981 and helped out with the Anchor Boys and was also an officer with 2nd Basingstoke Girls' Brigade, in charge of the Explorer section. When the GB closed Theresa was able to help out more regularly and has been the officer in charge of the Anchor Boys' since the early Nineties. Theresa puts a lot of time into organising the Fund Raising events for the company and is also the BB rep on the church council. In 2007 Theresa took on the duties of Acting Captain in addition to being the current officer in charge of the Anchor Boys'.

1982 welcomed Rev. Kath Paulett as the new Minister and Chaplain of the company. Later in the 80's we welcomed Rev. Keith Burchell.

• Lt. Trevor Barnes, like many other members of staff had been a member since he was a boy in the company and became an officer in 1982 aged just 19. His nickname as a boy was 'Treasure Barnes'. Trevor would later go on to become company Captain in the Nineties. Trevor is less involved directly in the BB now due to work commitments but is currently the North Hampshire & West Berkshire Battalion President, of which 3rd Basingstoke is a part of. Trevor still pops in to see us occasionally and has joined us on several Brecon trips since he left the 3rd.

• Another boy that graduated to become an officer during the Eighties is our very own W/O Michael 'Sid' Payne. Nicknamed Sid when he was a boy, Michael is the longest serving member in company history and has given up his time since 1985 to help run the company - that is 22 years just as an officer! In fact Sid has helped with the Anchor Boys' since 1982 and currently works with all four age groups within the Company. Sid has a keen interest in photography and took many of the photos found on this website.

Other new staff members enrolled in the company during the Eighties included Dolcie McCarthy, Jean Grant, Robert Rennie, Mark Allen, James Rennie, John Forsyth, Steve Cross and Sharon O'Kelly (who later became Sharon Barnes after marrying Trevor).

• Lt. Adrian Fuller was a member of the 3rd since he was a boy and became an officer when he was 18. He stayed with 3rd Basingstoke for many years including a short stint as the company Captain. Adrian left us to go and help 6th Basingstoke who were short of staff at that time. Adrian is no longer a BB officer but is still actively involved with youth work, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme and Boys' Brigade when his skills as an experienced Expedition Leader are needed. He has joined us for a few Brecon trips since he left the company.

After Robert Crouden retired in 1986, Martyn Waters became Captain for a short time before he left for his successful career in BB. Wally was the last Captain of the decade and his enthusiasm took the company into the Nineties.

3rd Basingstoke BB at the BBC

On the 11th December 1982 3rd Basingstoke Boys' Brigade Company made an appearance on Saturday Superstore. The previous week a girls youth group had asked if anybody had gym equipment they could have. At the time our company had just bought some brand new equipment and so Captain Robert Crouden donated our old equipment to them and our Company Section boys went to BBC Television Centre, performed a gymnastics display and handed over the equipment.

BB Centenary 1983

One of the most important events of the Eighties was the celebration of the Boys' Brigade Centenary in 1983 and 3rd Basingstoke joined in with an event in Kent for the World's Largest Marching Band World Record Attempt. There were thousands of people in attendance and the huge band managed to break the record and played one tune 'Steadfast'. 3rd Basingstoke also had a large church service at St Andrews' Church with the entire company in attendance.

Success Stories

• One of the great success stories of 3rd Basingstoke is that of Barry Bridges. Affectionately known as "Big Barry" or "Big B" (since there was another Barry in the company at this time) he was an unforgettable character in the history of our company. Barry had Down's Syndrome and a mild learning disability. Barry was 17 when he joined the 3rd in the late Eighties and he remained a member of the Seniors for several years more than usual. There were many challenges to the leaders and to Barry himself at the time but everyone always treated him equally and with respect as a person. It was a great reward to support Barry, enable him to overcome his fears and learn new skills and abilities. In 1994 Barry earned his greatest achievement, the Presidents' Badge and he became a member of staff at the 3rd for a short time. It's fair to say that during his time in BB Barry grew beyond his limitations and became a man better equipped to face his life.

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