Lottery grant for Ballymoney WW2 veterans

The Heroes Return 2 programme awards grants to Second World War veterans from Ireland and the UK to make trips back to places across the world where they served.

To date more than £25 million has been awarded to more than 52,000 Second World War veterans, widows, spouses and carers across Ireland and the UK for journeys in the UK, France, Germany, the Middle East, Far East and beyond. From today, veterans will be able to apply for funding to go a second time.

From today, veterans in Ballymoney and across Ireland will be able to apply for funding to go a second time. To find out more about applying contact the Heroes Return helpline on 0845 00 131 or visit www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/heroesreturn

Frank Hewitt, Big Lottery Fund NI Chair, said: “It is for me a very real honour and pleasure to announce that our Second World War veterans across Ireland who have already been on a Heroes Return commemorative visit can now be supported to make another journey to a place where they fought or served.

“They let us know how important these visits are to them - whether it be a trip to London’s Cenotaph on Remembrance Day, a visit to the beaches of Normandy, or journeys to war cemeteries in the Far East. The experiences they revisit remind us that we must never take for granted the peace this generation secured for all of us and the debt we owe for the freedoms we enjoy and value today.”