THE chairman of the Kent County Council, Cllr Frank Gibson, has officially launched this year's Poppy Appeal in Kent at County Hall in Maidstone.

Cllr Gibson symbolically "bought" the first poppy in the county to mark the start of two weeks of fund-raising by the Royal British Legion and its supporters.

He then invited members of the county's Cadet Forces to present poppies to a group of veterans from the Second World War and also a war widows' representative.

Cllr Gibson was joined at the launch by Tom Styles, the chairman of Kent County Royal British Legion, Deputy Lieutenant Col Godfrey Linnett, representing the Lord Lieutenant of Kent Allan Willett, and Anne Figg, the president of the Kent RBL's women's section.

Civic heads from across the county who were also at the launch. They all bought poppies to demonstrate their support of the appeal.

The veterans presented with poppies were Albert Brooks who served in the RAF, Reg Carter who was in the Royal Armoured Corps, and Joan Miles who was in the WAAF. Widow Brenda Bradley, representing the War Widows Association of Great Britain, was also presented with a poppy.

At the close of the proceedings, Mr Styles read The Exhortation which was followed by two minutes silence. Then Cllr Gibson read The Kohima Epitaph which was followed by reveille.

The Royal British Legion reaches out to more than 13 million people in the UK and more than half of its benevolent funds come from the Poppy Appeal.

In Kent alone the Legion, with the support of other ex-Service charities, spends £500,000 in support of the ex-Service community in need.