NRA Journal - Summer 2003 - National Rifle Association

OBITUARIESJames(Jimmy)WatsonCompetitive shooting was a life long interest of Jimmy;he starting shooting and served 24 years with the UlsterSpecial Constabulary (Reserve Police) who had aprovince wide network of shooting teams. Jimmy wasa fair shot and regularly shot in competitions usingSMLEs converted to .22” and .303” No 4 Lee Enfields.In the early 1960s Jimmy joined Comber Rifle Club andbecame one of its formative members, helping to buildthe club and contributing to the many successes the clubhas enjoyed.Jimmy was respected by all who knew him. He was aman who instead of talking about doing things, quietlygot on with it. You could find him carrying out allmanner of tasks from patching a leaky roof to mowingthe grass on the outdoor range. Jimmy, with the help ofhis wife Nelly, kept Comber’s outdoor range as neat asany garden, this was commented on by all that visitedand resulted in the Sports Council for Northern Irelandpresenting Jimmy with a plaque for his achievements.He was a great worker and a stalwart of the club. Jimmyloved competing and travelled widely in Ireland andon the mainland. In the process he made many friends- all who knew him will have many fond memories andhe will be greatly missed.Throughout the many years there were a couple storiesof note. One year Jimmy purchased a second handbicycle from a shop in Brookwood and over the yearsthe sight of Jimmy peddling around camp on this oldclapped out blue bike was commonplace. One day,however, on his way to the range he fell off the bike;subsequently he shot badly and achieved a rather poorscore. This he blamed on the accident. Heading back tothe caravan he called in and placed his scores on theIreland board but in an effort to explain the poor scoreand keep his chance of being selected for Ireland open,he added a little note “fell off bike”. Later, some otherunsympathetic Irish shooter added “silly b****r”.In 1994 Jimmy and the Club Secretary decided, for achange, to go to Ascot Races on Queen’s Final day. Afteran uneventful day (we think this meant they lost) theytravelled back to Brookwood and in time honouredtradition called in for a pint or two at the BrookwoodHotel. Drinking their beer they wondered how theQueens Final had gone but they might as well have beenthousands of miles from Bisley, as none of the localsknew what they were on about. However they spied60the green plumes of some Northern Ireland cadets inthe poolroom and went to enquire. They didn’t knowwho had won but thought he was Irish. Two namescame to mind, Dave Calvert and Martin Millar. TheSecretary reckoned it was Calvert but Jimmy smiled andsaid “I believe Millar’s done it”. Had he not asked thatvery morning why they were going to the races and notstaying to watch him win the Queen’s? They soon foundout who won by means of a Polaroid picture on theircaravan door of Martin Millar in the chair. They caughtup with the winner’s party at the Surrey clubhousewhere Martin gave Jimmy a sincere public thanks forintroducing him to the sport and supporting himthroughout the years; he praised Jimmy to the point werewe all felt he had a share in Martins win.Jack Fitzroy Waters BennettJack Fitzroy Waters Bennett was born in Weymouth in1916. After leaving school at Sherborne, he followed acareer in law and studied to become a solicitor. In thelate 1930s he moved to Penzance as a qualified solicitorand soon became a partner in a firm. He remained withthis practice until his retirement in the mid 1970s. Evenafter his retirement he maintained a keen interest in thelaw and became a Deputy Registrar until the 1980s.During his 20s he became interested in shooting, bothfullbore and smallbore, and soon became an accreditedshot. Shooting was to become his main pastime activityand his passion. During World War II he was a Majorwith the Home Guard and Battalion Commander withthe Army Cadets, being in charge of shooting instruction.From the 1940s he was Secretary of the Lands EndFullbore Rifle Club and then became a founder memberand committee member of the Cornwall Rifle Club, basedat the Millpool firing range on Bodmin Moor. Otheroffices included Cornwall Secretary for the English XXClub and County Representative on the NSRA Councilwhere his professional background enabled him to makean important contribution to various legal mattersassociated with shooting. He was a chairman and latermade a life member of the Penzance Rifle and Pistol Club.He regularly shot at the Imperial Meeting at Bisley,together with various other shooting matches and oftenrepresented the Cornwall team. He attended regularfullbore shoots at Millpool and smallbore shoots both inan individual capacity and as a team member for thePenzance club. He continued his shooting until the early1990s when ill-health prevented him attending meetings.However, he continued his passionate interest inshooting and enjoyed receiving the various journals. Hedied on 20 July 2002, almost one year after the death ofhis wife, leaving his only son Tony.He was a consistently good shot, both fullbore andsmallbore and was a true multi-disciplinarian. Despitethis, he always remained modest of his achievements.He will be sadly missed by his fellow shooters inCornwall.