Gemmell Alexander
Gemmell Alexander | |
|---|---|
| Born | William Gemmell Alexander 19 August 1918 Hooton, Cheshire, England |
| Died | 10 June 2014 (aged 95) |
| Education | |
| Movement | Co-operative |
| Spouse | Rona Page Elias |
| Children | 5 |
William Gemmell Alexander MBE (19 August 1918 – 10 June 2014) was a British military officer, colonial officer, and co-operative and safety expert.
After reading law at Oxford University, he served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 5th Army Division during World War II. He served in France, Africa and Italy, and was present at the capture of the Belsen concentration camp.[1] He was awarded the MBE (Military), and was twice mentioned in despatches.[2]
As a member of the Colonial Service, he served in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands (now known as Kiribati and Tuvalu), Mauritius and Cyprus, helping to develop co-operatives.[2]
He was director of the International Co-operative Alliance from 1963 to 1968.[3]
Alexander joined expeditions to Lapland, the Cayman Islands and Iceland. He "cheated death" a number of times and later became the director general of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Smith, Anna (24 June 2014). "'Houdini man' who survived gas explosion, WW2, ship bombing, hurricane, gangrene and drowning...dies at 95". The Westmorland Gazette. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Gemmell Alexander - obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 11 September 2014. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ Shaffer, Jack (1999). Historical Dictionary of the Cooperative Movement. Internet Archive. Lanham, Md: Scarecrow Press. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-8108-3666-2.
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