Stroud staged its first-ever Armed Forces Day event at Stratford Park on Saturday.
Organised by members of Stroud and District Veterans’ Hub, the not-for-profit event was opened by Air Marshall Sir David Walker DL. Stroud District Council supported the event with £1,200 funding through its Armed Forces Forum and made Stratford Park available.
Stuart Love, Chairman of Stroud and District Veterans’ Hub, told Stroud Times: “This is really important to me and it’s important to us as a hub, not only because it raises our profile, but it raises the profile of veterans, serving members of the armed forces, and families of servicemen who have passed.
“It brings together like-minded people and displays things to the general public. We’re lucky in being supported by a lot of the emergency services because some are either ex-military or they’ve got fathers, grandfathers or mothers, that have done service. Everybody’s got a connection somewhere along the line to the military.
“I started off in the RAF as an apprentice, did my two-year apprenticeship, nine years of adult service, came out, and went to the Middle East. Met some interesting people, came back and joined the Army, and then I hung my boots up in ’99 and have been doing all sorts of jobs ever since. I retired last year.”
Plans are already underway for Armed Forces Day 2027: “We’ve started a GoFundMe account and depending on the success of this, we’ll be doing it again next year. It’s a bit of a learning curve for all of us, but it seems to be playing out okay. And yeah, we’ll be looking forward to another one next year,” added Mr Love.
Paul Turner, Stroud District Councillor for the Berkeley Vale ward, secured funding for the event: “I felt that it was a failing that Gloucester put on an Armed Forces day that was very sparse, but I felt that Stroud could do better in terms of the amount of veterans we have in the area, the fact that we’ve got this wonderful facility at Stratford Park, so I made an application for funding.
“Thankfully I was supported by the council and raised the money and I made it known to the Stroud Veterans’ Breakfast Club – Stuart Love and David Nash grasped the whole thing by the reins and said, ‘right, let’s get going’.
“Initially, it was going to be a small affair outside the Sub Rooms, but it grew and grew and grew and it gives me great pleasure here today to see this come together.”
A wide range of organisations, activities and refreshments joined in, including entertainment from the Innsworth Military Wives Choir, the Cheltenham Pipe Band, Jim’s Jive troupe, and information stalls.
The event organisers are still seeking a further £1,500 to help cover the remaining costs for this year’s event, while also helping to support planning for next year’s celebration.
A GoFundMe appeal has been launched to raise the final amount, and residents are encouraged to support the event if they are able: https://gofund.me/34607c7fa
Swipe through our gallery of photos below
