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Royal Navy helps launch Hampshire and Isle of Wight Poppy Appeal
25 October 2024
Royal Navy sailors helped to launch this year’s Royal British Legion’s (RBL) Poppy Appeal at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, delivering the first poppies by landing craft.
For the first time since 2020, the RBL launched their Hampshire and Isle of Wight Poppy Appeal in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard today. Representatives from across the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Army and Royal Air Force came together alongside veterans, local dignitaries and the public to launch the appeal.
In a nod to their forebears 80 years on from D-Day, sailors, both regular and reserve, arrived by landing craft alongside HMS Warrior this afternoon to deliver the first of this year’s poppies.
Invited guests and the public were welcomed by the Royal Marines Band Service and treated to performances from trainees based at the Alford Schools of Military Music at His Majesty’s Naval Base Portsmouth.
Claire Smith, the RBL’s Poppy Appeal Manager for South Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, said: “It’s so special to be here and to see everyone come together from all three services. The amount of effort and support the Navy have put into this is just incredible.
“Your poppy shows your Armed Forces community that you care so we encourage people to get their poppy and donate.”
Royal Navy veteran Allen Parton attended the launch and has benefitted from RBL’s support over the years after being injured in the Gulf War. Allen is also the founder of Hounds for Heroes, a charity that provides injured or disabled veterans with service dogs.
He said: “When the guns go quiet, the battle of disability, trauma and bereavement is just beginning for so many.
“The support given by the Royal British Legion isn’t just in November, it’s throughout the year.
“When I see people wearing a poppy, the message that is being sent out to over 900,000 injured servicemen and women is that people care.”
Among the invited guests attending the launch was Commodore Marcel Rosenberg ADC, Naval Base Commander of HM Naval Base Portsmouth.
It is a chance for us to reflect on the service of past heroes and those that gave the ultimate sacrifice whilst recognising and thanking our modern-day service personnel who ensure our safety at home and abroad.
Commodore Rosenberg said: “The launch of the Poppy Appeal is a major occasion in the Armed Forces diary and marks the start of a period of Remembrance for all of us.
“It is a chance for us to reflect on the service of past heroes and those that gave the ultimate sacrifice whilst recognising and thanking our modern-day service personnel who ensure our safety at home and abroad.”
This year’s focus for the RBL is to draw attention to mental resilience and the invisible scars, as well as physical injuries, that are left behind as a result of service.
Donations raised during this vital fundraising period are used to provide life-long support to serving and ex-serving members of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants.
The Poppy Appeal makes it possible to deliver a wide range of services to beneficiaries, with needs that can be complex and challenging, which could be anything from information and advice on practical issues such as finance and housing through to emotional support or nursing and care assistance.
More information on ways to support can be found at www.rbl.org.uk/poppyappeal.