SECOND TIME LUCKY FOR CCF SALAMANCA DINNER
CCF Salamanca Dinner – Second Time Lucky!
Heavy snow thwarted the annual CCF dinner in March. One guest offered to ski cross-country from Salisbury to Warminster. Another precariously cycled through the snow wearing a dinner jacket underneath their waterproofs. Despite our best efforts to overcome the weather, the evening was postponed.
Officers, cadets and guests gathered in Boniface Hall on Thursday 26 April for the CCF Salamanca dinner. Warminster School CCF is affiliated to The Rifles regiment. The Regimental Day of The Rifles marks The Battle of Salamanca on the 22 July 1812 when the Duke of Wellington showed his brilliance as an offensive general. Although the date of the dinner does not coincide with the anniversary of The Battle of Salamanca, it still provides an excellent opportunity for the CCF to celebrate and recall with pride the actions of The Regiment’s ancestors. This year the Contingent welcomed Colonel (Retired) Mike Thornton OBE as the guest speaker who commissioned into the Light Infantry alongside our Headmaster, Mr Mortimer.
For many cadets, it was their first experience of a formal dinner. It was an opportunity to understand the rules of etiquette and traditions, as well as hosting guests and socialising with cadets from other year groups. Cadets rose to the sense of occasion; they were engaging, looked the part and had fun!
There was music throughout the evening. Two of our talented music scholars played during reception drinks; Lukas played the piano and Hugh volunteered, or should I say, was volunteered by his fellow cadets, to play the trumpet calls for dinner. A quartet from the Salisbury City branch of the Royal British Legion kindly agreed, at short notice, to play during dinner which really added to the fantastic atmosphere. There was even an unexpected reunion for Xander Veitch with Eve Innes White, his Year 3 teacher from Salisbury Cathedral School who was playing with the quartet. She was thrilled!
A huge thank you to Head Chef, Alex Rall, and his team who once again worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make the evening special. It was a fitting way to dine out Senior cadets leaving the CCF this year.
Ange Garner, CCF Contingent Commander