A Grimsby teenager had one of his childhood dreams realised yesterday when he met the Coldstream Guards at Armed Forces Day in Cleethorpes.
Lance Corporal Hallifax of the Grimsby Army Cadets has always wanted to be in the Coldstream Guards regiment since he was six years old.
His mum described a scene of him marching around the house in his childhood, imagining he was part of the prestigious army division, so for him to meet the division is “thrilling”.
In an interview with Gi Grimsby News yesterday, Lance Corporal Hallifax said that he always wanted to be part of the Coldstream Guards, saying: “I’ve always just loved all the marching, and it’s something I’ve always been keen on, especially the ceremonial side of things.”
On meeting his dream regiment, he said: “I was nervous and excited. There were a fair few emotions, but then I actually met them, and they were all nice and quite understanding of everything, really. They’re really nice people.”
Lance Corporal Hallifax even got to try on the famous bearskin hat from the guards, saying that it was “not as heavy as it looks”.
His mum, Laura, said that she “couldn’t stop crying” when her son met his idols, saying that this all happened because of a comment on Facebook.
She explained how she saw a comment on the Armed Forces Day Cleethorpes Facebook community saying that the Coldstream Guards were coming to the parade and then texted her son before commenting herself, explaining how it was her son’s dream and how he would be “thrilled” to see them.
She added: “They contacted me, and it all just sort of went from there, and we’ve been excited all week long. He’s polished his boots every day, he’s ironed his uniform and he’s just been so excited.
“It’s been unreal, and we’ve been non-stop excited, so for it then to actually happen, I’ve been an emotional mess.”
Lance Corporal Hallifax is a part of the Grimsby Army Cadets, an opportunity that he says is “one of the best things” he’s ever done, and he encourages other people to join too.
When asked what he’d say to his younger self seeing his success now, he said: “Don’t back down. If you work at it, you’ll get better, and it’s all going to turn out well.”
Lance Corporal Hallifax’s next step is military preparation college before moving on to bigger and better opportunities within the armed forces, with hopes of one day being a Coldstream Guard.
(Images: MOD / Laura Hallifax)
Reporter.
Part of the Gi Grimsby News team since 2024.