The LFN Digestive is a non-profit newsletter and web site  www.lfn.org.uk for ex pats who live mainly in the South West part of France. There are many other readers who live elsewhere but have an interest in this area of France because they own a holiday home here or are regular visitors.

Some 8 years ago LFN had a British food business with stalls on a number of markets.  Scott Goodall who is the author of a book called The Freedom Trail asked if we would sell poppies on our stall.  The Chemin de la Liberté or Freedom Trail is the escape route across the central Pyrenees into Northern Spain used during WW2.

The amounts raised in the Poppy boxes were quite small in those days, but it was noticed that there was and still is a lot of interest in the Royal British Legion by the expats in our area.

The LFN Digestive has become a  popular information outlet for expats and has been a tool for raising funds for the Royal British Legion from the sale of the Poppies during the October and November poppy weeks. Five years ago we held our first Poppy Fair, a three day fundraising event, and our main attraction a very large model railway which had been built by Cliff Marker, former Senior N C O with the Royal Signals  regiment .

Fund raising for the Royal  British Legion has now become a way of life.  We have held other events to raise funds for worthy causes including  7/7 London Appeal, the Salvation Army in Regent Street London, and recently for “Young Jack” the son of Lee Rigby, the British Army Soldier, Drummer Fusilier who was murdered on a London street.

We have a team of volunteers who help at all our fund raising events. A number of Chelsea Pensioners in their scarlet jackets have flown in to help us increase our poppy sales by welcoming passengers at both Beziers and Carcassonne.

Adverts placed in the LFN Digestive from local English businesses are paid for by donating to the Royal British legion.

Each month we hold a  Book and DVD Exchange  in a local Casino supermarket in the town of Olonzac and  at McDonald's in Lezignan.  Expats can exchange their books and DVDs for a  donation into the Poppy Box.

Also we have a number of social events where we fund raise i.e. Fish and Chip lunches, Hog Roasts, and Musical Evenings.  Each year La Chorale Internationale de Capestang choir join us for an annual carol sing in the Casino Supermarket  where sherry and mince pies are served.  The last couple of years we have held a carol sing evening in the Kingston Bar Lezignan.  At all these events there is a tombola which increases the funds for the chosen charity.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.