Dear Chelsea fans, my name is Chris and I work for The Royal British Legion.

 

I just wanted to let everyone on the forum know that during the Chelsea game versus Everton, the club will wear shirts embroidered with a poppy in show of Remembrance. These shirts will be signed and auctioned by the Legion with all proceeds kindly donated to the Poppy Appeal.

 

 Chelsea FC have been big supporters of the Legion by displaying the poppy on their shirt, allowing us to raise incredible amounts to support the future of the living and also help us uphold the memory of fallen. If you would like to own a piece of Chelsea  memorabilia whilst also supporting the Legion please keep a look out on the club’s official channels for when the auction goes live between late November to December.

 

For more information on our partnership with the all Premier League clubs during the Poppy Appeal last year please visit http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/get-involved/partner-with-us/premier-league/

Many thanks for reading, and to the moderators, apologies if this appears to be an advert-type post

Chris

@Chris@TheLegion Thanks for posting. Thanks to you and everyone at the Legion for all the wonderful work you do.

I agree with Boyne, the legion does a lot of great work for a lot of fully deserving people. It's a real shame to see FIFA politicising England and Scotland wearing poppies on their national strips.

Thanks for posting.

Lest we forget.

This fuss about the poppy is totally absurd.  The poppy has never ever been a religious thing or a political thing.  The poppy as an emblem comes from John McRae's poem, In Flanders Fields, written after the First World War.  It is outrageous that people are trying to ban something that is a mark of respect for men and women who gave their lives so that we could live.

Well done, the British Legion!

 

Edited November 2, 20168 yr by moi
to add poppy picture

Just now, moi said:

This fuss about the poppy is totally absurd.  The poppy has never ever been a religious thing or a political thing.  The poppy as an emblem comes from John McRae's poem, In Flanders Fields, written after the First World War.  It is outrageous that people are trying to ban something that is a mark of respect for men and women who gave their lives so that we could live.

Well done, the British Legion!

 

Exactly moi. Exactly.

'At the going down of the sun and in the morning.'

'We will remember them.'

In Flanders Fields

by John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Inspiration for “In Flanders Fields”

Lieutenant Alexis Helmer, 1st Brigade Canadian Field Artillery. ⁽¹⁾

During the early days of the Second Battle of Ypres a young Canadian artillery officer, Lieutenant Alexis Helmer, was killed on 2^nd May, 1915 in the gun positions near Ypres. An exploding German artillery shell landed near him. He was serving in the same Canadian artillery unit as a friend of his, the Canadian military doctor and artillery commander Major John McCrae.

As the brigade doctor, John McCrae was asked to conduct the burial service for Alexis because the chaplain had been called away somewhere else on duty that evening. It is believed that later that evening, after the burial, John began the draft for his now famous poem “In Flanders Fields”.

For the story behind the inspiration for “In Flanders Fields”, see our page at:

Inspiration for In Flanders Fields

Related Topics

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/poems/john-mccrae-in-flanders-fields.htm

 

Edited November 3, 20168 yr by erskblue
Copy error

Earlier this morning I drove by a War Memorial in a town not far from where I live. Standing by the memorial were a couple of teachers and a group of primary school children. I think the children were aged about seven or eight. The teachers were given the children a lesson on what the memorial and poppies represent. Well done to the teachers. Have to say it made me feel very humble and brought a tear to the eye.

Its a disgrace how the poppy has become so politicised and can even split people who seem to forget how life could eb so very different if not for all the brave men and women who saved us from the Nazis, unbelievable really. 

https://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2016/11/remembrance-at-chelsea.html

Chelsea Football Club marks Remembrance Sunday by supporting the Royal British Legion's Poppy Appeal at tomorrow's match.

The Royal British Legion raises money to support serving members of the Armed Forces, veterans and their families.

Before the match, 50 troops will be outside Stamford Bridge to collect donations before watching the game as our guests, on top of the 50 seats given to Tickets for Troops at every home game.

Connor Lockett, aged 15, whose father Sergeant Michael Lockett MC died in Afghanistan in 2009, will be our guest in the Directors' Box for the eighth year in a row, along with his mother Natalie.

Two Chelsea Pensioners will lead the teams on to the field on Saturday. The players will wear shirts embroidered with poppies and we will be auctioning them after the game.

A minute's silence will also be held just prior to kick-off.

2016 marks the 100^th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, and on Tuesday 8 November we have planned a remembrance event at Brompton cemetery with students to commemorate the local impact. This is in conjunction with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the RBL.

Three days later, on Friday November 11, our education team are hosting an event for Age Exchange, providing people with a chance to share stories, artefacts and other information regarding the First World War.

The Legion is the nation's biggest Armed Forces charity providing care and support for all members of the British Armed Forces past and present and their families. Watch the video below to find out more about the history of the appeal and why the red poppy is at its forefront.

Last year, support from Premier League clubs and their fans raised more than £270,000 towards the Royal British Legion’s work with today’s generation of Armed Forces families and veterans, whether living with an injury or illness, coping with bereavement or finding employment.

However, the Legion does so much more than this, including funding research into blast injury studies, providing holidays at Legion-owned seaside centres around the UK, delivering specialist dementia support, funding theatre recovery projects and working with partner charities in their Pop-In Centres.

Fans can help the appeal by donating money to the service men and women collecting around Stamford Bridge tomorrow, and the club is also donating half of the proceeds from the matchday raffle to the Royal British Legion.

Did anyone see Antonios poppy/Chelsea badge at the press conference. Will sell a lot at the game tomorrow if they have been mass made.

5 hours ago, Richard P said:

Did anyone see Antonios poppy/Chelsea badge at the press conference. Will sell a lot at the game tomorrow if they have been mass made.

i saw it in the presser.  I really hope they have, as that's a great badge 

5 hours ago, Richard P said:

Did anyone see Antonios poppy/Chelsea badge at the press conference. Will sell a lot at the game tomorrow if they have been mass made.

i saw it in the presser.  I really hope they have, as that's a great badge 

The politicising of it isn't helped by morons like Oliver Holt posting moronic garbage like this on twitter:-

 

@OllieHolt22: Poppy debate interesting, if rather cyclical. I'm in favour of political expression in sport but only if it is a right of other nations, too

Regards the Chelsea/Poppy badge, get yours here for a great cause..

http://www.poppyshop.org.uk/chelsea-poppy-lapel-pin.html

 

Well done Chelsea FC for again, rightly remembering those who gave their all.