A Livingston Korean War veteran returned to the national memorial he helped build to mark the 73rd anniversary of the end of the conflict.
Adam McKenzie, 97, who is one of only two surviving Scottish veterans of the war, was joined by fellow veterans, dignitaries and supporters at the memorial in Livingston, where he lives.
Mr McKenzie laid a wreath on behalf of his fellow veterans during the ceremony before delivering the Call to Remembrance and reciting the Kohima Epitaph to honour those who died.
The former soldier, who served in the Army for 34 years including 26 years overseas, was instrumental in building the Scottish Korean War Memorial.
Mr McKenzie pitched the idea after discovering there was no dedicated site for UK Korean War veterans, and acquired a three-acre plot from West Lothian Council for a nominal sum of 1p.
He explained the site’s special significance for him: “We decided we wanted a memorial because there was no memorial solely to Korean Veterans anywhere in the United Kingdom.
“I went to Birmingham where we had a General Meeting and I pitched the idea – and got laughed out the hall. They said I’d never get it off the ground, so myself and some others decided to go it alone.”
To fund the project, the group stood outside supermarkets collecting donations.
Even after raising what they thought would be enough money and acquiring the site from the council, their challenges didn’t end.
Mr Mckenzie explained: “We believed we had raised enough funds and secured a contractor to build the memorial we had envisioned.
“However, two weeks later, they came back and told us they couldn’t deliver that design within the budget. They built a smaller version instead, but it wasn’t what we had originally planned.
“About six months later, we received a letter informing us that the site would have to close because it wasn’t fully accessible for wheelchair users and people with disabilities.”
Following a further £8,000 in funding from West Lothian Council, the original structure was demolished and rebuilt to the group’s exact design.
Today, the memorial features an arboretum of Korean firs grown from seeds sent by the South Korean Veterans Affairs Department and nurtured at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh before planting.
It also incorporates two mounds shaped like the Yin and Yang symbol on the South Korean flag, with a traditional shrine bearing the names of the fallen between them.
The veteran, who has lost his sight, was joined at the ceremony by representatives from Sight Scotland Veterans.
He currently attends the charity’s Linburn Centre to combat isolation and rebuild his mobility after suffering a stroke.
Adam added: ” The Linburn Centre provides an invaluable service, helping visually impaired veterans get out of the house, combat isolation, build confidence, and connect with others who share similar experiences.
“It gives veterans the opportunity to form friendships, build camaraderie, and show that life is still there to be enjoyed despite living with sight loss.
He concluded: “Sight Scotland Veterans has been a tremendous source of support. The staff, services and community have helped me enormously, and I’m incredibly grateful for everything they do. It’s a fantastic charity, and I simply can’t thank them enough.”
The Korean War is often known as “The Forgotten War” in the UK and America, because it fell between the Second World War and the Vietnam War and is often overshadowed in the public consciousness and mass media.
Millions of Korean soldiers and civilians were killed in the war, along with a total of 1,106 British soldiers.
