THERE was joy for a decorated Bromsgrove veteran ahead of Remembrance weekend after he was presented with a replacement Russian military badge for his beret after his was stolen last year.
We reported about the heartless theft which happened on October 26 – the day the 2023 Poppy Appeal was launched.
Albert Malin had a distinguished miltary career – he served bringing bodies back from D-Day when he was just 17 before joining the Arctic Convoys when he was 18. It was that latter tour which was why the Russian badge meant so much to him.
When he was 19 he served in the Far East and at the age of 20 joined the fire brigade.
The Bromsgrove Royal British Legion was able to get him a new beret following the theft but it was unsure if they would be able to find one of the rare Russian military badges.
That was until collector and Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal volunteer Lee Kiteley managed to find one in his collection.
He gifted it to Albert and it has now taken pride of place again on his beret.
Albert said: “It was great he managed to find one – I’m very proud of it.”
Lee added: “When we found out what had happened, we had to get him one for his beret.”
During his time in the armed forces, Albert received a number of top honours, including the Arctic Star for his time on the Russian convoys. He was also awarded the prestigious Legion D’Honneur which is the highest French honour and, first introduced by Napoleon, was given to servicemen and women from Britain and other nations for their role in helping liberate France from the grip of Nazi Germany.
