NAVY LENDS SUPPORT TO POPPY APPEAL IN THE CITY
THE Royal Navy’s HMS Richmond arrived in Wales this weekend to support the Poppy Appeal. The type 23 Frigate is in Britannia Quay after it arrived in Cardiff Bay on Friday. It will be open to the public today between 11am and 5pm when Poppy Appeal collectors will be on board.
It is the third year the Royal Navy has supported Cardiff City Poppy Day.
Yesterday saw a group of seamen and women from the ship join more than 150 volunteers in Cardiff city centre to sell poppies, catching the crowds on their way to and from Wales’ clash against Australia at the Principality Stadium.
HMS Richmond was one of two vessels which escorted a flotilla of Russian warships through the English Channel last month.
Last year the ship spent nine months in the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, where it seized drugs worth more than £29m and joined the fight against people smugglers.
Organiser Joanna Kelly, the Royal British Legion’s community fundraiser for Cardiff, said: “We are so pleased to have the men and women from HMS Richmond helping us this year.
“Every donation received will make a real difference to the lives of servicemen and women, veter- ans and their loved ones.”
Veterans from past and present conflicts are set to come together with the HM Lord Lieutenant of South Glamorgan, First Minister Carwyn Jones and the Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns to officially plant the Welsh Field of Remembrance on Wednesday at Cardiff Castle.
The Welsh Field of Remembrance plays an important part of the Royal British Legion’s work to ensure the nation honours the memory of those who have died in conflict.
More than 10,000 personal tributes will be planted, commemorating those lives lost, from World War I to the present day.
This year will also commemorate the centenary of Mametz Wood at the Battle of the Somme, which will be reflected in the field and during the service on Wednesday.
Teams of volunteers will start planting the crosses from tomorrow. The field will remain open to the public until November 19.
Last night, mothers of Welsh servicemen who were killed in Afghanistan were due to join hundreds of veterans and current soldiers to remember those killed in conflict.
It was the first time mothers would be honoured in the Royal British Legion’s Service of Remembrance in Cardiff at St David’s Hall.
A parade of veterans, servicemen and mothers was due to be led on to the hall’s stage behind a standard, with a cascade of poppies falling during a two-minute silence. Before the event, Antony Metcalfe, Royal British Legion area manager for Wales, said: “This year we are honoured to pay our respects to the bereaved families of current conflicts, along with the fallen of the two world wars.”
Wales’ support for the Poppy Appeal comes after the Royal British Legion launched this year’s Poppy Appeal with a campaign encouraging people to commemorate all generations of the Armed Forces – including men and women who have served in recent conflicts.
The 2016 campaign is encouraging people to “re-think Remembrance”, by asking people to acknowledge the sacrifices made by a “new” generation of veterans affected by war, as well as those who served many years ago.