AN EIGHTY-SIX-YEAR-OLD veteran was welcomed into the mayor's parlour following Sunday's Remembrance Service.
After the poignant ceremony at the Cenotaph in Victoria Square, in St Helens, Leslie Syers, who born in Warrington, was then invited to meet mayor Cllr Jeanette Banks to be honoured for his service.
Les was presented with his medal for serving out in the Pacific on Christmas Island in 1957 as part of Operation Grapple - a set of four series of British nuclear weapons tests of early atomic bombs and hydrogen bombs.
Les grew up in Warrington before leaving to join the armed forces at the age of 18 and starting his national service in 1956.
When he left the forces, Les and his family emigrated to Australia for four years where he plied his trade as a welder – before returning home to the UK and settling in Newton-le-Willows.
Les is now a resident at Adamstan House Nursing Home in Newton-le-Willows and is loved by all staff and friends and enjoys visits from his son, Paul.
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