A Swansea coffee bar will say a special thank you to veterans who have served our country on Remembrance Sunday by giving them a free meal. Lee West, who runs Copr bar in Castle Street in Swansea and served 17 years in the Royal Marines, will put on the event as a mark of respect.
Taking place on Sunday, November 13, the bar will be open at the venue from 10am before buffet food gets served at 1pm. The annual televised remembrance service will be shown on the big screen and the minute's silence will also be observed at the venue. Copr Bar does plenty in the name of the armed forces. Mr West is a trustee of military charity Sa1ute, which now uses the venue as its base. In celebration of the event Tomos Watkin has brewed a craft lager and stout called Sa1ute which will be sold on the premises with donations going to the charity.
The appearance of the venue from its outside also gives a nod to Mr West's military background and the military with a mural of soldiers, poppies, and the logo of Sa1ute on its shutters together with an image of the cover of his book Trampface, which gives an insight into the real life difficulties of those living homeless undercover in the UK. You can get Swansea stories straight to your inbox with our newsletter.
READ MORE: Access wartime records for free as poignant poem to commemorate Remembrance is unveiled
Mr West said: "We've got a bit of a gathering on Sunday. We're putting on free food for veterans and there will be a deal on for pints for Remembrance Sunday. It's massive for me to do something like this as someone who served 17 years in the Royal Marines and as trustee of a military charity. There will be the formal things happening elsewhere in the city but at Copr I wanted to do more of a bit more of an informal low-key thing so rather than a 'be here at this time' it's: 'We are doing this, this is what we're offering'. I want to keep it more as an informal thing and let people know they are welcome here.
"The bar will be open from 10am. Anybody is welcome to come along. We'll have the service on on the big screen with the minute's silence and the food will be coming out for about 1pm. There is no official timing to be here – it's open to anybody and everybody all day."
Sa1ute was formed in 2017 by a group of men in Swansea, achieving fully registered status three years later. Enough money was raised through fundraisers and events to buy a plot of 1.1 acres of woodland to develop into a veterans' retreat in a project which is ongoing. In the meantime it has hosted coffee mornings serving veterans with Copr used as a meeting place for them to socialise.
READ NEXT:
- Town's Remembrance Day parade cancelled because the council can't afford to close the road
- Remembrance Day Parade in Port Talbot will not be taking place this year after 'shift in the stance of police forces towards security'
- Terminally-ill veteran's dying wish is to support the Poppy Appeal
- Beautiful poppy tribute to fallen soldiers in village with no war memorial
- The spectacular poppy display created on the side of a Swansea church
