Military heroes rally in final plea to Portsmouth not to forget Remembrance Sunday this lockdown

The plea comes as the nation prepares to mark Remembrance Sunday commemorations in lockdown, with major parades and spectacles scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Now veterans have joined forces in an effort to support The News’s city-wide Stand Out for Heroes campaign calling on residents to honour a two-minute silence from their doorsteps.

And leading the charge from his doorstep is 100-year-old Ron Cross, of Alverstoke.

The courageous centenarian fought Nazi Germany as part of the 79th Armoured Division, taking part in the D-Day landings and fighting up until VE Day in May 1945.

He said: ‘It’s so important to remember the chaps who gave their lives so we could live the happy life that we have today.

‘A lot of chaps gave their lives for our benefit. It was because of the brave blokes like that that we won the war. I will never forget them.’

Joining forces with Ron is Hampshire soldier Phil Campion, who served with the famed SAS and grew up in Portsmouth.

‘It’s important that we remember and that we remember those who have fallen… brave men and women who throughout the ages have fought for our freedoms,’ said Phil on Twitter.

‘Without them and without the people who still do it, none of this means anything. So this weekend have a great one. Pause and spare a thought for those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice because I know I will be.’

The retired soldier’s rallying cry was echoed by Falklands veteran Chris Purcell, who will be placing a wreath at the city’s Falklands Memorial in Old Portsmouth tomorrow.

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The retired Petty Officer was left traumatised after surviving the sinking of HMS Sheffield in 1982.

The destroyer was blasted by an Argentinian Exocet missile, in an attack that killed 20 of his colleagues and injured 26 others.

Mr Purcell said it was critical people rallied together to remember all those who have served and paid the ultimate sacrifice for the nation.

‘This is going to be very different this year,’ said the 61-year-old, of Adames Road, Fratton. ‘But Portsmouth always comes together and I’m confident the city will come together bigger than, in these difficult times, to show their respect.’

Backing The News’s campaign calling homes, Mr Purcell added: ‘It is just two minutes, two minutes is nothing.

‘For a lot of veterans it isn’t just one day we remember, it’s something that is constantly in our thoughts. So it’s not much to ask for people to give up two minutes to remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.’

As previously reported, a number of private services will be taking place across the area, including in Portsmouth, Gosport, Fareham and Havant, which will be streamed online for people to watch.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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