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Grantham lady dresses up army teddy bears for British Legion




A Grantham resident has been dressing up teddy bears in military clothing to help raise money for the Royal British Legion.

Val Odell has been raising money for the Legion by dressing up bears in an assortment of military outfits, including paratroopers, military police and troops from Scotland and the Commonwealth.

The bears are then offered in exchange for a donation to the British Legion charity.

Val Odell with the Teddies which help raise money for the Royal British Legion. (28491971)
Val Odell with the Teddies which help raise money for the Royal British Legion. (28491971)

Val, British Legion’s official bear lady, said: “It’s all very exciting. We raise quite a bit of money for a really good cause. I go through a lot of needles and a lot of cotton.

“The bears are very popular with local children. We took 12 up to the latest passing out last Sunday and they’d all gone within 10 minutes.

“The usual donation for the bears is around £10, but I’ve seen people give more. Any donations are welcomed.”

Val has dressed around 50 bears for the upcoming passing out parade on February 23, when she will be helping Grace Knightall, poppy organiser, who runs the British Legion stall at the Prince William of Gloucester barracks and at various other local fetes and festivals.

As well as offering a wide range of military-dressed cuddly toys, the British Legion stall will also include opportunities to purchase poppies, bags, books and
more.

Although most of the bears are dressed up as men, Val has also created a female mascot for the WRAC, wearing the group’s old uniform.

Most of the teddy bears are provided by the British Legion. However, Val also searches around local charity shops to find more bears of all shapes and sizes to dress up.

To find out more about the British Legion and their upcoming local events, visit their website at counties.britishlegion.org.uk/counties/lincolnshire



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