June 6 will be the 55th anniversary of D Day, 1944. The York Branch of the Normandy Veterans Association has 55 members all of whom, with one exception, fought to liberate Normandy during the weeks from June 6 until August 20, 1944.

Most of us soldiered on to Belgium, Holland and Germany.We shall hold a memorial service on June 6 at All Saints, Pavement, with the Rev David Porter, and we have invited several other ex-service associations and the Lord Mayor, Sheriff and Ladies.

Most of our members are over 75 but a group of us are off to Normandy at the end of June to visit some of the 1,908 graves of our former comrades who were killed in Normandy.

We are to have a collection in the city on June 2 and 3 to boost our funds and those of The Spirit of Normandy Trust so we can subsidise our members' cost of travelling to Normandy and the various other venues such as our annual parade in Whitehall and a service in Westminster Abbey.

We will also get a chance to see some of our old comradses

We hope York people and visitors will show their generosity by helping to fill our collection tins.

D Haydock,

Honorary Secretary,

For and on behalf of the Normandy Veterans Association (York Branch),

Kirklands,

Strensall,

York.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.