2998: Granda Goffin, family hero

<p dir="ltr">I grew up always being told about my hero Granda, so much so that, on the anniversary of the commencement of WW1, I took Granda's surname into my own.<br><br>Granda was a miner, who lied about his age in order to go to war.<br><br>He told his daughter, my Mam, very little about the war but one story carries on through the family 100 years later. Granda told how, after witnessing a battle, his senior officer broke down in distress - he collapsed into Granda's lap & sat there like a baby, being hugged by my Granda as his senior officer cried like a baby.<br><br>Granda rescued a senior officer under fire, receiving a gallantry medal. He received another honour for being in advance of his unit, monitoring a village for hours: under constant fire, he went back & forth to his unit, feeding information about the enemy's position.<br><br>In total, Granda received the DCM twice (DCM & Bar) & the Military Medal.<br>A modest, kind, & gentle man, he returned to the mines after the war - his service underground killed him, dying a painful death of lung diseases.</p>