John Wyndham

In 1990, with just five members, John Wyndham founded a young people's marching band, which was officially adopted by the Royal British Legion in 1993. Since founding the group, John has been the inspiration and mentor for hundreds of young people, many of whom were facing personal difficulties. The Royal British Legion Youth Band is fully inclusive and currently has 110 young members between the ages of 10 and 25, who pay just £1 per week. Through John's dedication and love, the band is completely self sponsoring and it works tirelessly to acknowledge the sacrifices made by service men and women in the Armed services. The band is invited to perform at a number of prestigious events both nationally and internationally. John was awarded an MBE for services to the band in 2001. His vision has always been to encourage young people to participate in a positive, yet self disciplined experience, and he has spent hundreds of hours developing and promoting the band voluntarily. I would like to nominate John to be a torchbearer in recognition of his invaluable contribution and leadership to the local young people in our community.