102 year old Surrey veteran can now wear his war medals with pride again
A 102 year old Surrey war hero who was unable to pin on his medals can now wear them again with pride.
George, who served in the British Army during the Second World War and now lives in Epsom, showed the old, frayed ribbons to a trained volunteer who was documenting his life story as part of the Force for Change veterans’ project.
Tracey Morris, the project lead for Epsom and Ewell, contacted SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity.
She worked with Adrian Mundin, SSAFA’s divisional secretary, to arrange for the honours to be sent to medal specialists in London.
The Taxi Charity for Military Veterans then stepped in to transport the medals to the company’s premises in Leicester Square.
The taxi collected the honours from an event marking the third anniversary of the Epsom and Ewell Veterans Community Hub, where George was showing his medals, still in the cardboard box in which they were delivered to him more than half a century ago.
The honours were then conveyed from the hub to the medals company for repair.
Complete with new ribbons and displayed on a rack, the medals were reunited with their owner at the Comrades Club in Epsom, where George was also able to meet and thank Kim Morton, representing SSAFA, Ian Lingham, of the taxi charity, and Tracey.
Watch George tell his story:
The local veterans’ project brings together former service personnel through friendship groups, events and days out and may involve an opportunity to record their life stories for the archives.
It’s a pilot scheme which is initially focused on three areas of Surrey – Epsom and Ewell, Guildford and Surrey Heath.
Former service personnel, whether younger or older, are encouraged to get involved.
The county council is working with armed forces charities and local museums and organisations to deliver the project, which is funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.