Ripon Military Heritage Trust (RMHT) has secured a £1,000 grant that will be used to capture memories of military activity in Ripon during and after WWII.
The funding will be used to acquire the necessary recording equipment for the history project.
And RMHT is now appealing for people with relevant stories to tell who would be happy to be interviewed, and for volunteers to undertake the interviews.
All prospective interviewers will be fully trained and equipped by the Trust.
RMHT has already undertaken trial recordings of two national service period soldiers who served in Ripon, one a member of the White Helmets motorbike display team, and the other, Arthur Lampkin, a champion motocross rider.
Their stories have been described as “fascinating” and are now preserved for future generations.
Now the Trust is seeking to roll out this oral history programme to capture many more unique memories before they are lost.
Chairman of RMHT, Guy Wilson, said:
“We have already learnt so much about military life and activity around Ripon from speaking to people who were there.
“We now want to capture that and more on recordings before it is too late so that the contributions of the people who served in Ripon can be properly understood and remembered into the future and the many humorous and illuminating anecdotes about army life are not lost to us all.
“It is always a privilege and a delight to interview people and find out about what amazing things they have done or witnessed and so I know that those who volunteer to help us will find the experience enormously interesting and satisfying.”
The grant comes from NYC’s Stronger Communities Programme Inspire Fund.
The Stronger Communities initiative supports communities to help themselves and create local solutions and so allowing communities in North Yorkshire to have greater collective control of their own wellbeing, reduce inequalities and improve social connectedness.
Those interested in taking part in the RMHT oral history project in any capacity are asked to make contact via email ohp@riponmht.org, by phone 01765 777080 or via the Trust’s website (https://riponmht.org).
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