BIG salutes veteran WWII heroes with commemorative funding

Second World War veterans across the country can today sign up for a new multi-million pound commemorative funding scheme that will provide Lottery support for anniversary trips to the places where they saw action.

The Big Lottery Fund has today announced the opening of its funding initiative, Heroes Return 2, pledging funding for veterans, spouses, widows and carers wishing to mark overseas anniversaries throughout 2009 and 2010.

Sir Clive Booth, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund said: “The generation of men and women who served this country during the Second World War gave so much to protect the freedoms we enjoy today.  As they get older, pilgrimages to the areas where they saw service become ever more poignant and precious to our veterans.

“Today’s Heroes Return 2 funding announcement builds on the Fund’s previous support for our veterans. We were proud that we were able to contribute to events marking the 60th anniversary leading up to the end of the Second World War - including helping 39,000 veterans and their carers go overseas to revisit those sites where they saw action.

“This is why I am personally delighted today to announce the launch of Heroes Return 2, making a further offer to fund the trips for those veterans who would like our support to attend anniversary events across the world.  In this way, we hope to do our bit on behalf of the whole nation to honour the service and sacrifice so many of our veterans made.”

The Fund has opened up a Heroes Return 2 hotline for all veterans to ring for further information: Heroes Return 2 Helpline 0845 00 00 121. Hundreds have already registered their interest.

Pat White National Chair of the Italy Star Association said: “We are delighted that the Big Lottery Fund have given us another opportunity for more of our veterans, some who have not had a chance to visit their areas of combat, to return and bury their nightmares.”

Pat White continued: “The first time I entered a Commonwealth war grave cemetery it felt as if I was entering a different world, so calm and peaceful: when you walk in peaceful lanes so green, remember them and think what might have been. We do remember them.”

The Big Lottery Fund has already supported veterans through the Awards for All small grants programme with funding over £178,000 to support anniversary trips this year.

Launched to mark the historic 60th anniversary of D-DAY in 2004, BIG’s former Heroes Return scheme awarded £16.6 million to over 39 thousand veterans, spouses, widows and carers to fund commemorative visits to Second World War battlefields, cemeteries and other significant places across the world.

Heroes Return was the centre-piece of the Veterans Reunited programme including Home Front Recall which awarded £19.2 million to support UK-based group events and activities to commemorate those who contributed to the war-effort on the home front, and Their Past Your Future with an ongoing £9.6 million scheme funding a UK-wide schools and education programme to give young people the opportunity to learn first-hand from veterans about their experience of war.

Further Information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours contact: 07867 500 572
Heroes Return 2 Helpline 0845 00 00 121
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102030
Textphone: 0845 6021 659

Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk