A DEDICATED Poppy Appeal collector is hoping to surpass his fundraising total for last year.

Ronald Newman, 83, has lived in Port Isaac for 28 years, and been collecting for the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal for almost 20 years.

He took over Poppy Appeal collecting from his wife around 18 years ago after retiring from self-employed carpentry and building.

Last year he raised around £860, and said: “I’m hoping to do better than last year. The year before that I collected about £700.”

Mr Newman told the Post that while he has been collecting for the Poppy Appeal for almost two decades, in the Hartland Road and Tintagel Terrace areas, four years ago he had an idea to enable him to raise more money.

“Only in the last four years I got the idea of standing down by the Peapod shop because of the holidaymakers.

“It’s lovely. I like meeting people, and people like to talk to you. It’s interesting.”

So far this year, Mr Newman has ‘already filled up five boxes’ with donations, and he keeps going back to the Poppy Appeal organiser for ‘refills’.

Mr Newman, a former Lance Cpl and who worked for the command secretariat, undertook two years’ National Service with the British Army from 1950 and then signed on for four years with the Royal Artillery.

He added: “I do it in all weather really. Now they make a great effort to look after the boys — that’s the reason I do it.

“There are seven sons in the family. My father served in the ’14 war and the seven sons served in the British Army — a military family really.

“I’m still military minded. I still wear my beret and spit and polish my shoes as I used to do.”