Proud To Be 'a Thunsca Lad'

A Memory of Thurnscoe.

My name is Alan Moore and I was born at No.7 Church Street on the 18th December 1944. Apart from 12 years I spent down Bolton on Dearne, I have lived all my life in Thurnscoe, and that I am proud of. I was a Co-op milkman for twelve years in Thurnscoe and Goldthorpe, and then the Co-op Insurance Agent for Goldthorpe and " The bottom end" of Thurnscoe for the next 25 years. I dealt with some of the nicest people on this planet.

A story I have told many people over the years is that my son, Keiron, was born with severe brain damage and was totally disabled, as well as being epileptic. At the end of 1972, my wife Beryl & I heard of a special treatment centre in America that specialised in the treatment of children with our son's problems. In 1972, it was the first one of its kind in the world. Unfortunately there was nothing in this country to compare with The Institute For The Achievement of Human Potential. We went to a meeting in Halifax, where we were informed about everything relating to the Institute. We mulled it over for a while, then decided we were taking our lad there. That was along with 66 other families nationally. To go there, ( flying to America in 1973 was expensive) the treatment there, the equipment we needed when we came back, came to a total of £1,920 ( the price of a 2 bedroom semi). I took a second mortgage out on my own home to cover part of the costs.

A neighbour of ours, Oris Turton, came round to our house one evening to ask if it was right about us going to America with our Keiron. We confirmed what he asked, and he then said that the Thurnscoe Harmonic Male Voice Choir, of which Oris was a member, had asked if they could do a concert in aid of Keiron. Well, that was the start of it. Now, this was the incredible thing, taking into account that the miners had just returned to work, having been on strike for the best part of six weeks, so had had no income for that six weeks, we had £2,130 raised for us by all the pubs and clubs in Thurnscoe and Goldthorpe. That was fantastic. Also, when we came back from America, we needed the help of up to a dozen people a day to do the necessary work with us to help our Keiron. We were turning people away - even at Christmas. Thurnscoe people are the best, they are the greatest.

---

---