Michael Grinter

[Michael Philip Grinter]

Hello all
I was very excited to find this group tonight. I started off by trying to find out where I could get my fathers service medals as a merchant seaman. I rang dad after talking to the MGCA from Australia to get some details from him. He has his shipping book register what ever you call it to get his discharge number. Any way to cut a long story short he said he had the book but no records of his first ship the SS Penolver which was sunk on the 19th Oct 1943. I searched for the Penolver and found you. I rang dad immediately and started to talk to him about it all - reading at the same time stuff on your site. He remembered many names and is still trying to remember more. He was telling me details about what he remembered before I read them out to him off your site on the Penolver. It's very exciting I think for both him and me as he had put a lot to the back of his mind and I didn't actually speak to him much about this as he never brought it up. Dad is one of the survivors Philip Edward Grinter Rank JOS. As yet we haven't seen his name mentioned anywhere in the records. He's going to have a good think about who and what he remembers over the next few days and I'll post it to the site. It's funny he didn't know the name of the ship that picked him up...he now does! The Delisle or the ship that pick them up after they were sunk 15min latter! We had a great chat about it all and he had some surprising memories about it all which I'll try to relate later to the group. Anyway this is all just an introduction, I'm very much looking forward to talking to you all. We live in Australia I'm now 58 and Dad is 86 he has been living here since I was borne. He's from Charmouth England.

[Mike Hall]

first of all welcome to this site.
its a bit like buses on here,someone will be along any minute.
these persons will be able to help you even more.

from the information given in your post,i have found out your dads
registration number as R 267464 this also gave his birth date.
it also registered his birth in dorset.

do enjoy your voyage with us.

mike

[Ron B Manderson]

You will enjoy this site.
Ron the batcave

[Michael Philip Grinter]

Thanks Mike and Ron I'm looking forward to getting to know this site better and yourselves - I'm enjoying it very much.

Thanks for Dads dispatch number Mike I didn't have it when I sent the first post. We are currently waiting for info to be sent from the National Archives. But more importantly very interested to hear from any seamen out there. Dad is getting on a bit now but is in good shape and he's very excited as am I in making contact with people re his involvement at sea.

I posted his ships today along with a bit of detail re the Penolver. I now have his account of it's sinking ( something he has only ever mentioned once before ) and lots of other great stories and memories are coming out.

Look forward to talking more soon,

Mike.