Call Sign July 2009 - Page 29 - Mike Son's bits and pieces...

Charlie Rubin
Together with Brian, I attended Charlie Rubin’s Funeral. Having not seen him for some time, I was shocked to hear he hadn’t been well and of his passing. I first met Charlie about forty years ago when I first joined Dial-a-Cab – then ODRTS and Lords - as a journeyman. He was a dispatcher and I remember having a whinge about something or another, most probably about voice channel signals or that a driver wasn’t where he said he was when blowing in for a job. However, Charlie invited me to the Control room to listen to the voice dispatch system and listen to what dispatchers had to put up with from the drivers. No change there!
I used to see him at some of the cafes where he loved to talk about anything and everything. He was a man who loved people. This gentle and loving man will be missed by his family and everyone who knew him. My condolences to all the family

Doug Sherry
It was also with great sadness that I heard of the passing of our friend and loving husband to Audrey, Douglas. No words can adequately give comfort during this extremely difficult time. The good causes Doug supported were a testament to the distinctive qualities he possessed. Although both Doug and Audrey supported many charities within the taxi industry and outside, one of the first encounters I had with him was many years ago at an LTFUC charity event, a horse riding competition that was certainly a first for our charity. Together with a riding school, the committee organised the event and Doug kindly sponsored the catering. However, as was Doug’s nature within all his endeavors, the support given was limitless.
Catering an event with so many

Mike Son's bits and pieces...

competitors and their families, he constructed a marquee offering a sumptuous menu, which included steaks, vegetarian options and desserts at no cost to either the participants or the charity! A truly magnificent gesture. I mention this, one of many donations given, because as I said to Doug at the time, his support exceeded anyone’s expectations. His reply was that if he committed himself to something, he gave it the best he could give. That was Douglas indeed, a man of honour with a huge generosity of heart.
I’m sure friends and colleagues will have many wonderful stories and encounters to talk of. I will miss our good friend, but will cherish the memories we have of Doug.I take this opportunity in sending our sincere condolences to Audrey and the family…

Traveling with SAS - no not the Strategic Air Services!
My wife and I recently visited Sweden to see our family who have lived there for a few years.
I don’t know if any of you have been there, it is most certainly a beautiful country, although very expensive to live in or visit. In beautiful Stockholm, we had two coffees and a pastry at cost of £15.
Seeing our three-year-old grandchild was wonderful - he speaks English and Swedish, such
a clever little boy! Am I biased?

You bet! Anyway, a great holiday
until we were coming home.
   We arrived back at Stockholm airport and while trying to check in our luggage, found that our flight to the London City Airport had been cancelled. Then everything went tits up. I was told we’d be getting on another flight to Heathrow - not much help to us due to having a Southend taxi driver (who took us to the LCA) waiting to pick us up. When we arrived at Heathrow, I was told a taxi would take us home. We contacted our Southend driver to explain that our booking with him had to be cancelled, but he understood the situation.
   An SAS (Scandinavian Airline Systems) representative gave me a voucher, which indicated the name of the "cab" company and directed us to Valet Parking on Terminal 3. Was it a London Taxi? You guessed it – no! I objected and said I wanted a London taxi. The reply was they could not use them because they were too expensive and the airline had a contract with a car company. Other than take public transport to Westcliff, we had no choice but to accept.
   Although the driver was pleasant and quite helpful, the vehicle was dirty and stunk of curry. During the trip home, I asked the driver what the cost of a trip to Southend was and he said about £110. If I was empty, I wouldn’t mind doing a trip like that! He also said he rarely took passengers, mainly luggage that had been lost by various airlines. He sometimes traveled as far as Scotland and Wales. No wonder the airlines are losing money.
   I have written to SAS complaining about the whole saga and look forward to their response.

Mike Son
Special Projects

DaC's Lee gets his championship medal

A delighted Lee Pearce shows off his two children and the championship trophy

Bedfont Green’s match against local rivals Bedfont would normally be a tense affair. But this season saw BG with their Dial-a-Cab goalkeeper, Lee Pearce (J71), going into this final match of the 2008/2009 Combined Counties Premier division season amidst a carnival atmosphere, having been on a 22 match unbeaten run and their biggest crowd of the season knowing that the team had already won the championship and promotion even before the match had kicked off! And in fact, Bedfont Green easily took their unbeaten run into match number 23 with a 3 – 1 victory that included another brace for BG striker Chris Henry.
   Following the match, league Chairman John Bennett presented the championship trophy to Bedfont Green captain, Jon-Barrie Bates, much to the obvious joy of the crowd.
Lee Pearce – who will be marrying his long time partner Becky on 1 August – told Call Sign:
   "This has been a magical day. I have missed very few games this season and watched us progress from a slow start into an almost unbeatable force. It’s hard to believe that the club is barely five years old. We are going places…!"
   Congratulations to Bedfont Green…