On behalf of the President and members of the City of Ely RBL, Serving personnel and veterans , I would like to pass on my sincere thanks to all those who turned out to support yet another Remembrance Parade. The Cathedral provided a great start to the day with their Remembrance Service which included the Poppy Drop from the Octagon which always brings a tear to the eye as we remember ALL those who have made sacrifices in the service of others, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We had the privilege of having the Vice Lord Lieutenant for Cambridgeshire alongside Lucy Frazer MP, other County and local dignitaries and representatives from the USAF at RAF Mildenhall.
The marching contingent excelled again this year with support from RAF Cadets (who carried the RAFA Standard as well), Army Cadets, Girl Guide and Scout groups, St Johns Ambulance (who also provided medical cover), First Responders, Royal British Legion Contingent and veterans who were led by the City of Ely Military Band and the Union and City of Ely Standards; sorry if I have missed anybody of the list. The parade went well thanks to VisitEly, Ely Markets and Estates teams, Spotted in Ely, Ian and Lisa’s Star Roadshow and Neighbourhood Watch amongst many others.
My niece (Amelie) paraded with the Brownies, and, like all the relatives, it gives me immense pride to see her and so many people supporting our veterans throughout the year but more especially at this time. Yet again your generosity has excelled during the Poppy Appeal; the Poppy Appeal for 2021-22 raised more than £45000 in Ely & District alone. We cannot thank our poppy appeal collectors and support teams this year which was especially difficult without a dedicated Poppy Appeal Organiser (PAO); Lucy Acred the County Fund Raiser provided support which was exceptional considering she had to support the whole County of Cambridgeshire over the last few weeks and more. We also pass on our extreme thanks to Les and Verity Wilson for their hard work in running the Appeal over the last few years and hope to have a PAO in place for next year and the RBL team will support in the meantime.
If anybody has any feedback regarding the parade to ensure we continue to honour Remembrance appropriately or would like more information about local Royal British Legion branches and Ely’s Armed Forces & Veteran’s Breakfast Club please email me at CityofEly.Chairman@rbl.community. Watch out too for a new Veterans Support hub opening at the Library in the near future with the support of the council and Armed Forces breakfast club amongst others. The hub will provide advice, support and a place for a chat and hot drink for veterans and their dependents. If you are a veteran or are/were married to a veteran, please drop in. More details will be advertised in due course. Kind Regards David Martin Chair City of Ely Branch Royal British Legion
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