Former soldier and her horse Chester to lead Remembrance Day parade in Sandy – proudly wearing hand-knitted poppy rug

An ex-soldier will lead this year’s Remembrance Day parade in Sandy – with her horse Chester proudly wearing a rug made of hand-knitted poppies.

The poppies were donated by volunteers who responded to an appeal posted by Samantha Wenn on her Facebook page The Adventures Of The Floppy Eared Pony.

Samantha said: “A few months ago I popped a post on Facebook to see if residents in our area would be interested in helping make a rug for Chester filled with poppies. The response we have received has been phenomenal. The local residents came together to create a beautiful poppy rug made out of hand-knitted poppies.

“My mum has spent many hours and months sewing all these beautiful poppies on by hand. The rug is over 7ft, so very heavy and all the poppy buttons and leaves were sewn on individually.

Samantha and Chester paid their respects at last year’s Remembrance Day parade carrying poppies specially made after some were stolen.

Added Samantha: “We had a couple of beautiful poppies which were made for us after my first lot were stolen from my yard a few weeks before Remembrance.

“The response we had received when people saw us last year was absolutely fantastic with people asking us why we were not part of the parade. This year I asked if this would be possible and to our delight they said yes, so not only are we in the parade but we have also been asked to lead the parade.”

Samantha was in the Army for eight years, receiving a medal after a six-month tour of Afghanistan.

She said: “This is our way of showing our respects not only for the fallen soldiers but also the animals who served beside them.”

Samantha and Chester will also be appearing in a number of charity events leading up to Halloween and Christmas.

This year’s Remembrance Day Parade and Service will take place on November 12.

The parade will begin on Swan Lane and march through to the Bedford Road War Memorial, where the two-minute silence, Act of Remembrance and wreath laying will take place, before proceeding via the High Street to St Swithun’s Church, for the Service of Remembrance.