Travel firm Stagecoach has launched its specially decorated double-decker to raise awareness of the Poppy Appeal.
The bus is being used on routes around Cumbria to raise awareness of this year’s Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal which culminates with Remembrance Sunday on November 9 and Armistice Day on November 11.
Tom Waterhouse, managing director for Stagecoach Cumbria and North Lancashire, said the vehicle had become a familiar sight in the county and provided a great way to promote a cause that was important to many of the firm’s passengers and staff.
He said: “We are proud to support the Poppy Appeal and to do our bit by running our special liveried bus.
“Many former armed services personnel work for us as drivers and mechanics – they literally keep our services on the road.
“The Poppy Appeal is one of the UK’s highest-profile charity appeals and the double-decker is a great way of grabbing people’s attention.”
Last year’s Poppy Appeal raised £51.4 million nationally – and the Royal British Legion uses the cash to support not only veterans and their dependents, but also serving forces personnel in crisis. The charity says that means one in nine of the population can call on it for help.
Around £1 million of those funds are used in Cumbria each year where the Royal British Legion has around 140 people it is working to support at any one time.
The need is diverse – many veterans are elderly and need help with mobility and self care, while some recent veterans from campaigns in Iraq or Afghanistan are living with major physical injuries and mental trauma.
Other veterans fail to cope with the switch to civilian life and need help finding work or a home.
Alan Whitmore, Poppy Appeal manager for Cumbria and the Isle of Man, said: “As a charity we haven’t got the budget to pay for advertising locally so by running their Poppy Appeal bus, Stagecoach are giving us publicity free of charge.
“The Poppy Appeal is about remembrance, but we’re supporting the future of the living too.
“When you look at where we’re supporting people it’s in every postcode in Cumbria – we’re in Appleby, Kirkby Stephen, Carlisle, Whitehaven, we’re helping everywhere. I think that’s why it resonates and people support us.
“We’re not asking for big amounts, but if everyone gives a little we can do so much.”
