Major Edwin ‘Ted’ Hunt MVO from Worthing will be celebrating his 102nd birthday on 23 March 2022.
Edwin “Ted” Hunt MVO is a British retired waterman who served in World War II, and was, appointed Queen’s Bargemaster in 1978. He lives in Worthing and is a regular on trips across the UK and the continent with the Taxi Charity.
Major Ted was born on 23 March 1920 in London when George V was on the throne. In 1935 aged 15, Ted began training as a Thames Waterman, learning how to tow Thames barges up and down the river. When war broke out, as many did, Ted added a year onto his age and enlisted, he was immediately sent to Norway.
During April and May 1940, Ted was involved with taking the port of Narvik from the Nazis. When Narvik was captured, Ted returned to the UK and helped build military ports across Scotland. Promoted to Captain he was placed in charge of fifteen Rhino ferries tasked with transporting vehicles to Gold Beach for the D- Day landings.
Retiring from the army as a Major, Ted taught navigation and watermanship at the City and East London college and was appointed Queen’s Bargemaster in 1978. He retired from Royal service in 1990 and was made a Member of the Royal Victorian Order.
Dick Goodwin, Vice President, Taxi Charity for Military Veterans, said “Everyone at the Taxi Charity sends their best wishes to Ted for a very happy 102nd birthday. He will be joining the charity visit to The Netherlands in early May for Dutch Liberation and we will all gather to raise a toast to this great man.”
Ted will be joining his family for a birthday celebration at a local community centre and the Care Home where Ted lives is arranging a concert in his honour.
To find out more about the support the Taxi Charity offers veterans visit www.taxicharity.org
About the Taxi Charity
The Taxi Charity is run by volunteer London black taxi drivers and has been supporting thousands of veterans of all ages since 1948. The charity arranges free trips to the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, for acts of commemoration and days out to museums, concerts, or fundraising events in the UK, to catch up with friends and comrades.
The Charity worked tirelessly during the pandemic to ensure veterans received regular contact by sending out a greeting card each month, gifts to mark the 75th anniversaries of VE and VJ day, stockings at Christmas and arranging Guards of Honour at veterans’ funerals. Volunteers have also helped with regular phone calls, food shopping, transport to hospital appointments, and more recently taking veterans for their Coronavirus injections.
The charity was awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in June 2021.
To fund and facilitate their work, the charity is reliant on generous donations from members of the public, businesses, and trusts.
