Wester Ross convoy museum plans set for boost
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PLANS for a lasting tribute to war-time heroes of the Arctic convoys from Wester Ross to Russia are set for a "substantial" boost.
The inaugural WWII and the Arctic Convoys week, a major feature of regeneration plans in the Wester Ross community of Aultbea, drew to a close on Saturday.
The success of the event prompted organisers to announce plans for a follow-up in the same week next year.
Meanwhile plans for a visitor attraction museum are set to get a boost on Tuesday this week when Ross MSP Rob Gibson hands over a "substantial" contribution from a Russian well-wisher of the project.
The Caithness, Sutherland and Ross MSP will present the Russian Arctic Convoy Museum team with a cheque from a Russian businessman to aid the development of the project at Aultbea.
Mr Gibson, who is the convener of the Scottish Parliament cross-party group for Russia, has worked with colleagues to encourage sympathetic Russians to give practical help to commemorate the vital Arctic convoys from 1941 to 1945.
He said: “I have been given the opportunity to take part in a Scottish Government reception hosted by Veterans Minister Keith Brown.
"The event on Tuesday afternoon in Glasgow will host some of the surviving veterans of the WW2 convoys. It follows a pledge from the minister in his reply to a Member’s Debate which I secured last September.
"The Scottish Government wants to support the heroic deeds of the Arctic Convoy veterans in the most practical ways possible.
“As a key part of Tuesday’s reception I will be able to convey a substantial cheque to the Aultbea museum organisers. The reception at the Trades Hall in Glasgow is practical recognition for the men who kept open the supply lines to our Soviet allies at huge cost in men and ships for four years of total war."
The MSP has again hit out at the UK Government which he says has still to ensure that the veterans gain proper recognition.
He added: "However I am delighted that the Scottish Veterans Club and the Aultbea Russian Arctic Convoy committee at Aultbea are embarked on a long-term project to display memorabilia of these dark days of WW2 as a permanent tribute to the heroic deeds of merchant seamen and naval personnel."
