Volunteers needed to support Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal

Volunteers are needed to support the Poppy Appeal, which helps veterans, current serving personnel and their families, who have served and sacrificed for their country.The Royal British Legion’s largest annual fundraising campaign launches next month and ahead of this, the charity is recruiting volunteers to sell poppies between October 22 and Remembrance Sunday on November 8.The simple act of wearing a poppy sends a personal message of thanks and support for the Armed Forces community to see, as well as supporting those in need. Mandy Clements-Hunt is the North Yorkshire Poppy Appeal Manager for the Royal British Legion. She is looking for volunteers in the region and told GB News: "In the area, we have around 3,500 volunteers and they are vital to make the appeal run and we cannot do it without those fantastic volunteers that are out and about collecting. TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say "It's vital that we raise money for the armed forces community. You will see conflicts and modern conflicts to this day."The volunteers will mostly be out and about in supermarkets during the appeal, raising the money to support the Armed Forces community. It's important for us to support those that are serving and those that have served."Those guys and ladies have gone out and they have given their all for us, and so it is great for us to be able to just give that little bit back to them, to say thank you."That's why we wear our poppy on Remembrance Sunday. Isn't it absolutely glorious when you're looking around and seeing everyone wearing their paper poppy? For me, when I am on Remembrance Sunday, I'll look around and it's job done if everyone's wearing their poppy."They understand why they're wearing the poppy, and of course, it's not just the older generation that wears their poppy. We need for all of the lovely little children to be wearing them as well."Mandy added that if people are looking for a more active part in the Appeal, Poppy Appeal Organisers are also needed in Skipton or Harrogate.This role is crucial to delivering the Appeal and organising a team of dedicated volunteers, and training and support would be provided.Army veteran Barry Blood is proud to have served his country. The 79-year-old joined the Royal British Legion 30 years ago and has sold poppies ever since.He is also the former President of the Skipton Royal British Legion branch. Barry Blood started out as a cadet in Skipton in the 1950s, when he was 12 and joined the Army in 1965, where he served in Cyprus, Germany and Northern Ireland. During his time in the forces, Barry experienced the trauma of conflict.LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:Yorkshire super prison warned against expansion as Labour eyes empty wings to ease overcrowdingCare home residents moved to tears as wartime memories brought back to lifePiddington resident fears for her safety over 'unfair' plans to house 1,256 asylum seekers"When I joined the Army, we started out in Norway, 200 miles into the Arctic Circle place called Tromso," Barry told GB News."It was freezing cold and there was no proper protection clothing in those days, not like you have nowadays, and it was terrible."I thought it was going to die, and so did the other recruits with me. We went back to Germany for a short while, and then we went to Cyprus and we loved that as there was no rain in Cyprus and lovely sunshine."But the Greeks and the Turks were fighting each other, and we were posted there for six months in Cyprus, and we lived in tents for six months."Every night, we used to stand to down the trench with a rifle and to burn it. That's how it was in those days. That was 1967, and then we went to Germany and then on to the Caribbean on a troopship in a convoy doing exercise with the US Marine Corps in the Virgin Islands."Barry went on to become a training sergeant at Strensall Barracks in North Yorkshire and then moved to Catterick before touring in Northern Ireland between 1971 and 1974.Tragically, more than 3,500 people died during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and Barry said: "It was a traumatic time for the soldiers and it was for the wives as well - the wives suffered just as much as we did."You didn't see your family as much at all and it ruined a lot of family life."On the first tour in Northern Ireland, we lost two soldiers killed and one wounded on the first patrol we did, and I think about that all the time."The Poppy Appeal is a vital part of Remembrance and supports serving personnel, veterans, and their families.Speaking at the cenotaph in Skipton, Army Veteran Barry Blood said: "Our cenotaph here has got lots of names on from Iraq and Afghanistan and Northern Ireland and so on."I try to remember what's gone in the past and Remembrance and the Poppy Appeal means a lot to me, and we definitely need more younger volunteers to get involved in selling the poppies as I'm nearly 80, some of the other veterans who sell the poppies are in their 90s, and we need help from the next generations for such an important cause."The Royal British Legion, which organises the annual Poppy Appeal, relies on around 60,000 dedicated volunteers to help deliver the appeal nationwide each year.The money raised makes a vital difference to people in the Armed Forces community, providing expert advice and practical support, whatever the need, whenever it’s needed.The Royal British Legion can support with housing, debt and money advice, employment and physical and mental health.Anyone interested in finding out more about being a volunteer can contact the Royal British Legion on a dedicated helpline 0345 845 1945, or online here. 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