11-Nov-2022

Veteran Stan Ford Appointed Memorial Ambassador

The Trust is delighted to announce that Normandy Veteran, Cyril ‘Stan’ Ford, has been appointed as an Ambassador of the British Normandy Memorial.

Stan joins Veterans Mervyn Kersh and Joe Cattini, who are also Ambassadors of the Memorial. Their role is to endorse and support the aspirations of the Trust in remembering the 22,442 servicemen and women who died on D-Day and during the Normandy campaign, through campaigns, media interviews, events, and so on.

Stan has a keen interest in supporting the Trust to raise funds and awareness for an Education Centre on the site of the Memorial, ensuring that future generations will never forget the debt of gratitude owed to all those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.

Stan in 1943 after receiving his call-up papers to join the Royal Navy.

As a 19-year-old, Stan served on HMS Fratton, an escort ship that accompanied ships taking men and supplies across the Channel on D-Day and afterwards.

Stan on his wedding day with wife Eileen, on 25 August 1948.

HMS Fratton was sunk, believed to be by a midget submarine, off the Normandy coast on 18 August 1944. 38 of the ship’s crew were picked up, however 31 lost their lives. The explosion was so severe that the gun platform that Stan was operating was blown off the ship and into the water, with Stan still on it. Stan was pulled from the sea and taken to a field hospital on Gold Beach. The injuries he sustained have meant that he has had to walk with leg callipers for the rest of his life.