Veterans meet again to honour their own

Shrewsbury Armed Forces and Veterans Breakfast Club returned to the Red Lion in Battlefield for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The group regularly met on a Sunday morning before the lockdowns, and as delighted as veterans were to see their old pals again, it was a particularly poignant get together.

A full sized Tommy figure has been dedicated to D-Day veteran Reg Steventon KSLI, who was awarded a Legion D'honneur medal in 2017, shortly before passing away aged 98. It has taken pride of place in a new memorial garden at the pub, created by manager Sarah Lawton and Adam Price. Sarah also arranged for plaques in honour of Reg and breakfast club member and RAF veteran Dave Stephens, who sadly and unexpectedly passed away last September.

Reg's partner of 40 years Nancy Wood was all smiles when she saw the garden and the Tommy figure unveiled. "I think Reg would have been amazed," she said. "I didn't know anything about it. It was a real surprise."

The breakfast club's head Amanda Cundall worked with Royal British Legion Industries fundraisers to have the Tommy donated. The RBLI dedicate the Tommy's to veterans who have incredible Second World War stories to tell. Reg, who was in the second battalion of the light infantry unit, landed on Sword Beach in France on the morning of June 6, 1944.

He pushed south to Caen, fighting against German forces and at one stage he was buried when a trench collapsed in on him as a result of shell fire. His medals, including his Legion D’honneur, were recently donated to The Soldiers of Shropshire Museum, as per his wishes.

This April, the RBLI had a team of eight cyclists relaying across the country, taking in various significant Second World War sites in a challenge dubbed Tommy's Race to Victory. The Shrewsbury group cheered them on when they passed St Chad's Church.

Amanda said: "On behalf of the club, I would like to thank the RBLI, Sarah and her team for their fantastic support, Roden Nurseries who donated the flowers and to Kelly Bates who donated and created the plaques.

"Sarah and Adam have gone above and beyond with the work they've done. How we kept it a surprise, I'll never know."

The breakfast club has been running since March 2016 and it is open to all military veterans, serving members of HM Forces and their families. It is a lifeline to many members, particularly those who live alone and miss that service cameraderie. It is free to join, with no subscriptions and no dress codes.

During the last 16 months the club has kept its members together via its social media pages and almost weekly Zoom meetings which have been run by Jenny Harris, ex-Women's Royal Naval Service.

Any veterans or serving members who wish to join the club can do so by completing the online membership form via the club’s website shrewsburyafvbc.co.uk