Legacy of Barrow soldier David Shaw lives on ten years after death

David Shaw died on January 16 2013 at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham after sustaining wounds in Afghanistan.

The 23-year-old suffered a gunshot wound when his checkpoint came under attack from insurgents in the Lashkar Gah district of Helmand province on January 14, 2013.

Ten years on from Kingsman Shaw’s tragic death, his parents Dave and Jenny Shaw have remembered their caring and kind-hearted son who followed his dream of joining the army.

“We can’t quite believe it’s been ten years,” Mr Shaw said.

“When you’re thinking about that person regularly, you still feel like it’s current even after ten years.

“We go up to see him regularly at the cemetery, and put a poppy wreath down for him on Remembrance Sunday each year.

“We still think about him a lot.”

Mr Shaw said it was his son’s destiny to join the army which he very much enjoyed.

He said: “As a young man David was very thoughtful and thought about others a lot. He always wanted to make sure new people settled into the army and went out of his way to make them feel welcome.

“We’re always reminded of what a good soldier he was and how much he loved what he did.

“He always wanted to go into the forces from a young age. He was in the marine cadets, so it was a natural progression from there. It was almost his destiny.

READ MORE: Brave Barrow soldier memorialised in army HQ renovation

“They had trained for going to war so he wasn’t too phased about being deployed to Afghanistan. He was doing his job. When David was there, we sent parcels and letters and spoke to him on the phone once a week.

“As a family we wanted him to be safe and there was always a bit of worry but you reassured yourself he was trained to do this.”

In January 2013, the family were told David had been wounded while deployed in Afghanistan but were unaware of the extent of his injuries.

Mr Shaw said: “We were told David had been injured and taken back to Camp Bastion with a neck injury. He was taken to a hospital in Birmingham that same day but we didn’t find out until the following day how serious the injury actually was.

“We didn’t want to think the worst but unfortunately it turned out to be the worst. A normal day turned into a nightmare which has carried on until today but you learn to come to terms with it.

“We just did what we could as a family and looked after each other. Everyone was instrumental in helping everyone else.”

Last year, the Barrow Army Reserve Centre in Holker Street revamped its headquarters - complete with a training suite which they named in honour of David.

Michelle Shaw, sister of fallen soldier David Shaw, attended the opening of a training suite named in his honour (Image: Submitted)

Mr Shaw said the family felt proud David’s name and legacy was being honoured.

He said: “We thought that was fantastic that his name was being remembered.

“It’s nice they made the decision to honour David and continue his legacy because we didn’t want his name being forgotten.

“We always remember the last time we saw him before saying goodbye as a young 23-year-old soldier.”

David joined the army in February 2008 and successfully completed the Combat Infantryman’s Course at the Infantry Training Centre in Catterick and was posted to 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment.

Following this Kingsman Shaw deployed to British Army Training Unit Suffield, Canada, in the summer of 2009 with Corunna Company where he was employed as a rifleman in a mechanised platoon. He then conducted pre-deployment training for Operation Herrick 12 and deployed with Corunna Company in March 2010 to Nad ‘Ali district in southern Helmand.

Upon returning to the UK, Kingsman Shaw remained with Corunna Company and successfully qualified as an Assault Pioneer.

As the battalion prepared to deploy back to Afghanistan on Operation Herrick 17 in October 2012, Kingsman Shaw was the voice of experience for the junior soldiers, deploying not only as an Assault Pioneer but also as a qualified sharpshooter.

David was involved in an incident in Afghanistan where four local children had fallen into a canal following a vehicle accident. The children were taken by local nationals to the nearest security forces checkpoint where Kingsman Shaw did not hesitate to administer first aid to the children. His swift actions were praised by the MOD.