NATIONAL BEST KEPT WAR MEMORIAL 2023 WINNERS
It is with great delight that we can announce that the efforts of the branch have been recognised nationally as well as locally in the Best Kept War memorial Having already won the Highlands and Islands area Best Kept War Memorial for the Small Memorial without a garden category we were entered into the National competition.
After many years of some great efforts and dedication the memorial over time has gone from being a good memorial to a fantastic memorial with ongoing work being carried out by dedicated members of the Branch and others who have assisted in some way with the efforts to get the memorial to a higher standard that the Town and surrounding area can be rightly proud of, those include The Highland Council, The Garden Stop on the Blar for the Flowers and decorative stones, Fort William Town Team, The Alexandra Hotel for the coffee and tea.
We would like to thank all members for the help and encouragement that you give to the volunteers. Having picked up the certificate for the Highlands and Islands area award towards the end of last month the judges were so impressed with all the entries for the BKWM and explained how hard it is to decide which memorial should win as they are alll of such a high standard now, it really does come down to the finer details that allow them to pick a winner for the different categories
HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS AREA BEST KEPT WAR MEMORIAL
2023
Once again the efforts of Branch members, staff of the Highland council, Fort William Town Team, The Garden Stop on the Blar has paid off with the War Memorial at the Parade in Fort William receiving a high mark in this years BKWM and going forward to be judged in the National BKWM There are different categories and our memorial is in the Small communities without a garden category.
Highlands & Islands Best Kept War Memorial 2023 entry
Another super effort put in by members on Saturday the 10th of June in preperation for this years BKWM 2023. With a special Thanks to the following James Kennedy of Fort William Town Team for attending with the pressure washer and bowser and his time, The Highland Council for the paint and brushes, The Strathmore Alexandra Hotel for the coffee and teas, The Gardenstop on the Blar for supplying the flowers for the planters, and the Branch Members for the weekends work.
The next works party will be on Saturday 1st Of July at 1100hrs Please do come along even if you are only wanting to get a catch up with other memebers for a Blether.
Service Not Self
With the ongoing events of Covid19 How pleasing it is to see so much getting done. From prescriptions, shopping, phonecalls, and with the technology availble in this day even real time face to face meetings with the committee and members regurarly keeping in touch through the internet. With so much getting done to try and make sure that all our veterans are able to maintain a safer living during this lockdown, We must say a massive thanks to everyone who has been donating food and with packaging items to allow as safe as possible means of delivery.
INVERNESS MARATHON MARCH 2020
On Sunday 8th March members of the branch gathered in Inverness to assist Martin Glenesk in his attempt to compete in the Inverness 5k Challenge. To enable him to do this Maria Devey; Jeanette Lane; Shona Macinnes; Susan Macinnes and Gaynor Weldon stepped forward to push his wheelchair around the course.
Also competing in the wheelchair class was Stuart Gallacher who propelled himself in a fantastic time of just over nineteen minutes. Plus, at the age of 74, Bruce James ran the 5k course.
Tony Weldon, who has done this race before, entered the half marathon and completed it in 2hrs and 40 minutes. He admitted that this was not his best time and wondered if it was time to hang up his trainers?
Everyone from the branch thoroughly enjoyed the event and the cheers and applause from the crowd as Martin and the ladies entered the arena with the Legion Scotland flag flying were amazing.
They completed their lap of the stadium with Martin getting out of his wheelchair and walking across the finish line with the public address system telling the crowd what this challenge was all about and reminding everyone what a fantastic job the Legion does for veterans.
Other than the personal sense of achievement that all had, the event raised £180 in sponsorship through a “Just Giving” page.
FORT WILLIAM WAR MEMORIAL PROJECT
As a Branch, we are currently trying to raise funds to allow us to purchase two memorial benches that will be installed adjacent to the Fort William War Memorial. The aim being to provide somewhere that people can quietly sit and reflect on those who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country.
The first bench will be semi circular in design and will pay homage to those who fell during WW1 (see picture left). The second bench will be oblong in design and will pay homage to those who fell during WW2 (see picture below right).
The total cost for both benches is £2200.00 which we hope to raise through a combination of grants and sponsorship but we have a long way to go.
Therefore, if you would like to make a donation to this project you may do so by simply sending a cheque made payeable to: FORT WILLIAM & DISTRICT BRANCH RBLS to our Secretary at Fort William & District Branch RBLS, Rock Cottage, 2 Stronaba, Spean Bridge, PH34 4DX.
WHITE WATER RAFTING COMRADESHIP EVENT
On Saturday 07 July the Branch held a Comradeship Event that was based upon a white water rafting experience. The event was funded by donations from: RBLS HQ; H&I Area; the Branch and personnal contributions. Over 30 people attended the event and the staff of Active High must have wondered what they were in for when a coach full of pirates decended upon them.
After some initial trepidation, all agreed that it had been an incredible experience that they would not have wanted to miss.
Miraculously not a single member fell into the river, although one or two came perilously close to doing so and many swallowed more of the river Garry than they had wanted to.
Although this event may not appeal to everyone, our group consisted of one member in his 70's and a family member under twelve. Two of our less able members also participated and both agreed that this experience had been a great tonic for them.
It was good to see that by the start of the second run all of the initial nerves had gone and much high jynx ensued on the way down the river.
James Porter is to be congratulated for organising, what was without a doubt a superb event, as do the staff of Active High whose professionalism and skill was a pleasure to see.
BIG BLIND WALK 2018
Today, Mon 11 Jun 2018, members of the Branch assisted Julian Jackson in his quest to walk from Lands End to John O'Groats in order to raise awareness, and promote, the wonders of eye research. This is an incredible feat given that Julian himself is blind and we were honoured to do what we could to guide him through Fort William and along the Great Glen Way to South Laggan.
The chosen route took in: the Soldiers Bridge across the River Lochy; Neptunes Staircase on the Caledonian Canal; along the Tow Path to Gairlochy; then past Achnacarry and on to Clunes. The final leg was from Clunes to the Lock at South Laggan and ended at the South Laggan Swing Bridge.
A big thank you has to go to Bruce James who acted as Julian's guide from Fort William to Clunes and to Tony Weldon who acted as the guide from Clunes to South Laggan and also completed the entire 21 mile distance.
We all wish Julian well and may he have favourable winds and calm seas for his onward journey.
Anyone who wishes to know more about Julian and his quest can do so by visiting his website at: https://bigblindwalk.com/
GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION (GDPR)
On the 25th May 2018, new legislation regarding data protection, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), comes into effect in all countries of the European Union (EU). The GDPR defines how companies and organisations have to handle the personal data and the privacy of individuals within the EU from now on.
At the Fort William & District Branch RBLS, we only collect the minimum amount of data required to fulfil our need to maintain an up to date membership database in order that we can manage your membership and keep you informed of matters concerning the Branch/RBLS.
We never sell or trade any of your personal data; but we do pass your data on to RBLS HQ. This is done to enable them to maintain a master membership database of the whole of the RBLS in order to meet the requirements of the RBLS SCIO and to ensure that you receive your personal copy of the “Legion Scotland Today” magazine.
More information on the GDPR may be found on the UK Government website at:
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation
As a result we have revised our Branch Privacy Policy which can be seen below. We do encourage you to read it.
There is NO ACTION required of you as, unless you notify us otherwise, we will continue to hold the personal data that we have about you and will use it only in the manner previously described here and in the Branch Privacy Policy.
BRANCH PRIVACY POLICY
This privacy policy explains how we use any personal information we collect about you.
Topics:
What information do we collect about you?
We collect personal information about you when you apply for membership of the RBLS.
The information we collect for our membership database is as follows:
*Only for those who have served.
The additional information that we hold about you is as follows:
· Branch Badge/Membership Number
· Membership Year
· Type of Membership
· Capitation Rate
· Method of Capitation Payment
· RBLS Membership Card Number
· Committee Position (if held)
How will we use the information about you?
We collect information about you to enable us to maintain our membership database in order that we can contact you to keep you informed about branch and RBLS matters.
We will not share your information for marketing purposes with outside companies or agencies; but we do share your information internally with RBLS HQ so that they can maintain a master membership database of the whole of the RBLS, in order to meet the requirements of the RBLS SCIO and to ensure that you receive your personal copy of the “Legion Scotland Today” magazine.
Access to your information and correction
You have the right to request a copy of the information that we hold about you. If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal information, please contact the Branch Secretary.
We want to ensure that your personal information is accurate and up to date. You may ask us to correct or remove information you think is inaccurate.
Cookies
Cookies are text files placed on your computer to collect standard internet log information and visitor behaviour information. On our branch website, this information is used to track visitor use of the website and to compile statistical reports on website activity.
For further information visit www.allaboutcookies.org or www.aboutcookies.org
You can set your browser not to accept cookies and the above websites tell you how to remove cookies from your browser. However in a few cases some of our website features may not function as a result.
Other websites
Our website contains links to other websites. This privacy policy only applies to this website so when you link to other websites you should read their own privacy policies.
Changes to our privacy policy
We keep our privacy policy under regular review and we will notify you of any updates to our policy. This privacy policy was last updated on 16 May 2018.
Deletion of your personal data
You have a right to have deleted any information that we hold about you but to do so may restrict our ability to manage your membership effectively and to keep you informed of branch and RBLS matters. However, for archive purposes certain data will be retained by us.
To have personal information deleted you should contact the Branch Secretary.
How to contact us
The Branch Secretary may be contacted by e-mail at: jeanettelane864@btinternet.com or by phone at: 01397 713959.
Branch Christmas Party 16 December 2017
The Branch Christmas Party was held at the Ben Nevis Hotel on Saturday 16 December 2017 with a total of 61 Members, Family & Friends sitting down to dinner. We were also honoured to have our National Chairman Charlie Brown and his wife,
plus our CEO Kevin Gray and his wife joining us.
As usual the meal was excellent and was praised by several members; entertainment was provided by "Mardi Gras Music" and many people took the opportunity to get up and shake a leg especially for the Conga and Strip the Willow.
The raffle was well supported and we must thank everyone who so generously donated prizes for it. Well done to all that won a prize and commiserations to those that didn't.
A great start to the festive season and hopefully we can all look forward to it being repeated in 2018, watch this space.
For more images of the party visit the Photo Gallery.
Visit to Fort George 12 August 2017
On Saturday 12th August 2017 eight members of the branch visited the "Amazing Ages" event that was held at Fort George. The event had a variety of living displays and re-enactments covering all periods of Scottish history from Medieval; Renaissance; Jacobite and Edwardian eras plus displays from the Roman; Pict; Viking; Napoleonic and WW1 & WW2 periods.
During the visit members also took the opportunity to visit the Highlanders museum which was highly enlightening and brought to life by our tour guide Dave.
All agreed it had been an enjoyable day and that once again it had been good for members to get together in this manner. However, for many, the day was truly rounded off by being able to observe the Dolphins swimming off the point of the fort.
For more images visit the Photo Gallery.
Tribute to the Revd David Railton MC MA
In order to mark the 62nd anniversary of the death of the Revd David Railton MC MA, members of the Fort William & District Branch of the Royal British Legion Scotland gathered at St Brides Church, Onich, North Ballachulish on Saturday 10 June 2017 for a memorial service.
The name of Revd David will not instantly mean a lot to many people until it is pointed out that it was he that thought of the idea of having a Tomb for an Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey that could be used to recognise the sacrifice of all those who died and were buried as unknown during the First World War; and so, on the anniversary of his death it was only right and fitting that we pay homage to him.
The event was organised by Bruce James and 12 Branch Members were present; our ranks were swollen by Kevin Gray, the CEO of Legion Scotland, and his wife; plus Major Janet McIntyre and Margaret Rae from the Salvation Army in Kinlochleven. Their presence was particularly poignant as David Railton’s father had been the Second in Command to William Booth who founded the Salvation Army.
For the memorial service all parties formed up in front of the grave and after a brief introduction from Kevin Lane, the Branch Chairman, Binions Lines were read out. Piper John MacCallum then played a lament during which the Branch Standard, carried by Drew Walker-Armitage, was lowered in homage. After a two minute silence a second lament was played; followed by Kevin Lane laying a wreath on behalf of the Branch. The Revd Malcolm Kinnear then led the Branch in the service of remembrance and prayers during which Bruce James read out a eulogy to David Railton.
The service ended with everyone visiting the inside of St Brides Church and then retiring to the Loch Leven Hotel for lunch.
All agreed that this had been a fitting tribute to a great man and that we must now perpetuate his memory so that he is not left forgotten again.
Preparation for the 2017 Best Kept War Memorial Competition
Today, Saturday 21 May, members of the branch turned out in order to clean the Fort William War Memorial in preparation for the RBLS 2017 Best Kept Competition. In the H&I Area Competition the memorial has won best in its category for the last two years but has always been marked down in the National Competition due to mildew on the statue itself. It was therefore decided that because it was three years since it was last cleaned that this year we would do it.
David Brady volunteered to head the project and after meetings with the Council Works Department and the Fort William Town Team a plan was put forward that met all the necessary health and safety requirements and was therefore acceptable to all concerned for us to carry out the work.
The task took 3 hours to complete but could not have been achieved without the willing support of all those who turned out on the day.
Special thanks must go to Campbell Plant Hire for the loan of the Elevated Work Platform (EWP), the Garden Stop for their very kind donation of white chipped granite stones to the Town Team for the work that they will now complete on the floral displays, to Dean Kennedy and his work party for the loan of the pressure washer and Callum Ross, who is not a branch member, but freely gave of his time to support us and who operated the EWP and physically cleaned the statue.
The memorial now looks magnificent and further plans are being made to improve it even further.
Well done to all concerned! (Further photos can be seen in the Photo Gallery)
AR Henderson Trophy
Oh we've done it again! Yet again the branch has been selected as being the most progressive branch without a club in the H&I Area and this has been recognised by us being awarded the AR Henderson Trophy for the sixth time.
This is a great accolade for the branch and justly reflects all of the effort put in by people over the last year. You know who you are so well done to all of you.
The photo shows Hugh Macinnes receiving the Trophy and Certificate from Eric Munroe the H&I Area President.
Bag Packing in Morrisson's
On Saturday 18th March 2017 the Branch was allowed to hold a bag packing fund raising event in Morrisson's store in Fort William. There was a good turnout from the Branch members who quickly got into the swing of things as the store became busier throughout the day.
Through the cheerful dedication of those attending, and the generosity of the people of Lochaber, we were able to raise the sum of £1280.80 which goes a long way to enabling us to meet the target that we need in order to continue our work supporting veterans.
Many thanks to all who were able to help out and a special thank you to Morrisson's for allowing us in to do this ( more photos of the event have been uploaded to the Photo Gallery).
Payment of Capitation Fees by Standing Order
The number of members wishing to pay their Capitation fees by Standing Order continues to grow.
Those that are using the scheme are already seeing the benefits in that they no longer have to find a member of the committee to pay their fees to and we do not have to chase people for their dues.
Our bank statements now clearly show the name or the code for each member that has paid and once this has been seen we simply fill out the Capitation Receipt and send it to the member concerned. However, don't just take our word for it, speak to a member who is in the scheme and they will confirm this for you.
All new members are now asked to use this system but any existing member who now wishes to join the scheme can still do so by informing a member of the Committee, and we will then send a form for you to complete and return.
Once a form has been received the details will be checked, it will be allocated a unique code for that member (this code will appear on our Bank Statement so that we know who the payment is from) and will then be sent on to the members bank so that the Standing Order can be set up.