How you can buy Remembrance Day poppies in France
Remembrance Day poppies are available in several regions and if there are none local to you, you can order by post
Every year the Royal British Legion in France raises a significant amount of money through its Poppy Appeal.
It has eight branches across the country, in Paris, Bordeaux and the South-West, Brittany, Linazay-Poitou-Charentes, Lyon, Nice-Monaco, Nord/Pas de Calais, and Somme, covering several different locations in their area where you can pick up a poppy.
Volunteers will sell the French equivalent of the Remembrance poppy, the cornflower or Bleuet de France, in towns and cities across the country from early November.
Anyone who wants to buy a poppy can contact individual branches on www.rblfrance.org. You can also email Catherine Curtis at kissmekate1@orange.fr, Brenda Vockings at bivockings@gmail.com, or Commander Michael Healy MBE at mhealy@orange.fr for poppies by post for anyone anywhere in France.
Many branches organise fundraising events. In Brittany, a raffle will take place at the branch’s monthly social event on November 5.
In Paris there will be a Coffee Morning at the Embassy Residence on November 6. Reserve a place in advance by emailing the Branch Secretary Janet Warby at janetwarby@yahoo.com.
She says it is a free event, but there will be items for sale and a raffle. Poppies can be obtained from British Churches in Paris, plus WH Smith and some M&S outlets or by contacting her by email or the Poppy Appeal Organiser, Richard Neave at richard.neave05@gmail.com
Last year over €20,000 was collected in the Paris and Ile de France region.
Brenda Vockings said various events are being organised by collectors in the Bordeaux and SW France branch.
People can contact her by email to find out the location of their nearest poppy collector, and she will post poppies anywhere: “In addition to traditional paper poppies I also offer 2019 poppy pins, car poppies and wreaths. I also put poppies on Ebay and have raised quite a bit of money in that way.
"I have some plans for the 2021 centenary of the Royal British Legion and I am beginning to compile a little book of memories, so if any Connexion readers would like to contribute I would be delighted if they would email me.
"Contributions will range from personal memories, recipes and food, artwork, poetry, photographs, resistance stories - really anything that people to-day would want to know about.
"I have in mind to do a historical review from 1921 to date so taking into account all conflicts. The more people who get involved the better to get a broad range of interest.”
