Concert to help raise funds for the Forest of Dean Imjin Memorial Fund on 20th September 2025. The funds raised will go towards the cost of the new memorial that will be placed in the Cyril Hart Arboretum at Speech House.
From the Forest of Dean Brass website:
We are excited and honoured to hold a fundraising concert with proceeds to the Imjin Memorial Fund.
Forest of Dean District Council has granted full permission for its memorial to be installed in Cyril Hart Arboretum, Coleford. The memorial will commemorate all armed forces personnel who fought during the Korean War 1950 – 1953 and will feature the names of veterans associated with the Forest of Dean who fought in the pivotal Battle of Imjin River between April 22 – 25, 1951.
The Imjin Veterans’ Memorial Group is delighted that fundraising for the memorial, which began in October 2024, is now nearing its end. “We are ready to commission the memorial,” said Julia Gooch, Chair of the Imjin Veterans’ Memorial Group. “The response to our fundraising appeal has been overwhelming and we would like to thank everyone who has donated or given up their time to organise events on our behalf. It’s great to see that there is such incredibly strong support for this memorial.”
Anyone wishing to contribute can do so by visiting the Imjin Veterans’ Memorial page on the Forest of Dean District Council website https://www.fdean.gov.uk/ImjinVeteranMemorial/ or https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Imjinmemorial .
A full list of donors will later be on display in the Forest of Dean District Council offices. Fundraising concludes this autumn with Forest of Dean Brass Band holding a concert in aid of the memorial on Saturday, 20 September at 7 pm at All Saints Church, Viney Hill. Tickets will be available on the door or can be reserved by contacting Sharon Stratford (sstratford@aol.com or 01594564920).
The project group are planning to hold a public unveiling of the memorial to coincide with the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Imjin River in April 2026.