A great-grandad who was enlisted from a South Pacific island to serve with the British Army more than 60 years ago is to be honoured with a full military funeral in a Kent village.
Billy Vodo’s coffin, covered with an Army drape alongside his Royal Artillery hat and belt, flanked by military top brass and carried by seven serving soldiers, will proceed from the family home to the church in Cliffe, near Strood.
Military personnel have embarked on a recce of the village to ensure next Friday’s proceedings meet with the approved protocol and are carried out with military precision.
Billy Vodo died on January 7 at his home in Cliffe Woods where he had lived for 45 years after a short illness. He was 82.
As a young man, working as a part-time labourer in Fiji, he was recruited by the British armed forces which sought to reinforce its numbers in the colonies after National Service was scrapped.
His illustrious career took him to Malaysia, Singapore and Germany as he rose through the ranks to Staff Sergeant.
He completed four tours of Northern Ireland and narrowly missed being killed in the Bloody Sunday atrocity.
Nicknamed Billy Vodo – drill sergeants were unable to master his real name of Nakaleto Vakavodokinaivalu – he was awarded a British Empire Medal for his contribution to army sport.
He was a gifted sportsman representing his regiment in rugby and athletics and was particularly good at golf, partnering with Fijian Prime Minister Ratu Kamisese Mara. He was also pictured alongside legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus.
Billy turned down an invitation from the PM to be a resident professional coach at a golf course in Fiji, prioritising his children’s education in England.
Billy met and married his wife Amelia, now aged 81, in 1966 while on a break on his home island where she sang in the church choir.
The couple have three children, Ella, 56, Tuwame, 51 and Agnes, 46, six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
After coming out of service in 1984, Billy worked briefly for an insurance company and then took a job as a taxi driver for Strood Cabs.
Years later, he started his own company, Gillingham-based CNC Taxis and had a fleet of about 35 vehicles operating across Medway.
Out in civvy street, he found administrative skills he acquired in the Army came in useful in the private sector.
He settled into village life and was the captain of Deangate Ridge Golf Club in Hoo where he played with his son, also a a talented golfer.
After a couple of health scares in 1996 and 1997, Billy was drawn towards religion and he became a “born again” Christian.
He was ordained as a pastor and preached at Army bases worldwide as well as closer to home at Brompton Barracks and St Helen’s at Cliffe where his funeral service will take place.
It’s there where mourners will be greeted by two uniformed standard bearers with the official flags of the Royal Artillery and the Royal British Legion.
A bugler will announce the arrival of the cortege while a bagpipe player and a Fijian choir will be performing traditional songs.
Billy’s close-knit family, many of whom live nearby, have paid heartfelt tributes to a loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather.
His son Tuwame approached his regiment after his dad’s passing but never imagined the response he would get.
The delivery driver said: “My father was a modest man and never really talked much about his life.
“He was a kind man and taught us life lessons and made a lasting impression on people he met.
“He was a happy man and always greeted people with ‘hello mate’.
“It’s only after reading about him and talking to people he knew that we are finding out so much.
“This send-off is for him. It’s what he deserves. We are leaving no stone unturned and not doing anything by halves.”
The vicar of St Helens, the Rev Clifford Stocking, will conduct the service which starts at 11.30am on Friday, February 14.
It will be followed by burial at 1.15pm at Fort Pitt Military Cemetery in City Way, Rochester, where a bugler will play the Last Post as his coffin is lowered into the ground.
Relatives and friends he has made all over the world, including from his homeland, will be able to watch online,
The couple have six grandchildren, Mia, Grace, Billy, Josh, Lilly and Rosie and three great-grandchildren Millie, Tommy and Sonny.
Donations are welcome to The Veterans Association, via T Allen Funeral Services, Strood. Call 01634 295552.
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