A 101-YEAR-OLD Second World War veteran joined First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to lay poppy wreaths during the national Remembrance Sunday commemoration in Edinburgh.
Jack Ransom (below), from Largs in North Ayrshire, was captured after the fall of Singapore in 1942 and spent three years as a prisoner of the Japanese working on the infamous Burma railway.
Ransom joined Sturgeon, Edinburgh Lord Provost Frank Ross, plus senior military personnel, members of the wider Armed Forces community and emergency services personnel for the wreath-laying and two-minute silence at the Stone of Remembrance on Sunday morning.
Prior to the service, Sturgeon said the commemoration was about expressing gratitude for those who lost their lives to preserve our freedoms.
Ransom said: “It was such an honour to be invited to lay a wreath in Edinburgh today.
“I may be the last person alive who worked on those railways.
“When I was released in 1945, I weighed only six stone and if the war had lasted much long I don’t think I would have survived.
“But I was one of the lucky ones.
“I wake up every morning and remember. Every morning. I remember that I’m still alive, I got my release, and it is due to those atom tombs.
“I also think all the time of those poor women and children who lost their lives in Japan to bring the war to an end.
“We must never forget what war means, and what it brings.”
Claire Armstrong, chief executive of the Royal British Legion Scotland, said: “Jack epitomises the spirit of the generation who gave so much and so it was fitting that he took centre stage today.
“Having had to curtail our Remembrance programme last year, it has meant so much to Legion Scotland members, the wider Armed Forces community and the public who joined us in their hundreds to be able to pay our respects in the traditional way once again.”
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This year is the 100th anniversary of the poppy appeal, and a Royal British Legion Scotland spokesperson said: “A year of commemorative events will reach a conclusion later this month when the charity will host a special centenary concert.
“Featuring a host of performers, the programme will reflect on the key moments of the past century that shaped the Legion, and explore the charity’s evolving role in supporting the next generation of veterans.
“The centenary concert takes place on Sunday November 28 at St Cuthbert’s Church in Edinburgh, and begins at 7.30pm.”
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