Bucket list wishes: Jack’s return to an RAF Spitfire

Posted on by Ricky

At Huntington and Langham Estate, it’s always an absolute honour to support the lovely people that we share our home with on their journey to completing bucket list wishes and reliving past experiences.

Bucketlist wishes

Over the past few months, we enjoyed accompanying Barbara on her Harley Davidson ride, as well as Leslie in her quest to relive her modelling days.

This month, in line with ‘Make Your Dreams Come True’ day on 13th January, we supported Jack, who lives at Huntington House, in his return to an RAF Spitfire.

During his time with the RAF, Jack trained in both Spitfire and Harvard planes. Part of his job included rescuing wounded servicemen during missions to the jungle in the Burma Campaign. As a result, Jack was awarded the Burma Star.

After leaving the RAF, Jack lived with his wife and two daughters and went on to work as a bank manager at Natwest in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire.

Since then, 98-year-old Jack has always wanted to see a Spitfire just one more time. So, a few members of our dedicated team at Huntington House accompanied him on a special visit to Goodwood in Sussex.

Missions to Burma

It was a delight to see Jack’s dream come true. Following the visit, Jack told us: “It was wonderful to see a Spitfire up close again – I have so many memories of training in them during the war. I have to admit, though, that I used to prefer training in Harvard’s – but there’s definitely something special about the Spitfire”.

Jack went on to tell us a little more about his missions to Burma: “The Brits would use bulldozers to make a strip in the jungle. This was so that I could land, pick up the wounded in my two-seater plane and transport them to the nearest hospital camp”.

In addition to his passion for planes and spending time with his family, Jack loves golf and likes to read – especially the morning newspaper.

Charlie, our MD, has also commented on Jack’s experience: “Everyone has parts of their lives that shape them as people, and become part of their identity. Flying a Spitfire in the RAF is obviously a hugely important part of Jack’s life, and it’s brilliant that he can still be reminded of it so vividly through seeing a Spitfire in person”.

This was a fantastic experience for all involved, and we can’t wait to make even more dreams come true. To find out more about our care, please click here.