Two women who have served their country in wars more than 60 years apart were celebrated yesterday to mark the launch of the county’s 90th Poppy Appeal.

Leading Naval Nurse (LNN) Sarah Butler, from Rawdon, and 90-year-old Connie Williams, from Guiseley, who was a corporal in the Royal Air Force from 1941 to 1947, were presented with the first ceremonial poppies of the year at a special Royal British Legion event in Leeds.

LNN Butler, 28, of the Queen Alexandra’s Royal Naval Nursing Service, has just returned from a tour of duty at Laskar Gah in Afghanistan and was chosen to represent those soldiers currently fighting across the world.

The former Benton Park School pupil said: “It’s a great honour to be here and to represent everyone really, not only the Navy, but the whole of the forces serving in Afghanistan.”

A former student at Leeds University, she joined the Navy in 2005 and served at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan in 2009.

She was volunteered to receive the poppy by her mother Cathryn, who is a member of the Guiseley Branch of the British Legion.

LNN Butler, who is based at the Ministry of Defence’s military hospital in Birmingham, said people should not underestimate the effect of the Royal British Legion’s support to serving military.

She said: “It helps knowing the support we’ve got back home with things like this. It’s absolutely brilliant.

“The boys go out and do what they do on the ground because they know the support they’ve got.”

Miss Williams, a member of the Guiseley branch of the RBL, said she would never forget yesterday’s launch.

“It was quite an honour and a surprise to be asked to do this,” said Miss Williams, who will be selling poppies and continuing her 60 years of work with the Red Cross.

“It’s something I shall never forget and it’ll go down in my book of history.

“It’s memories and you never forget and you can’t forget. The comradeship and the teamship and the cooperation that we had during the war in the forces – it was a bad time, but it was a good time for lots of things like that.”

Earlier LNN Butler and Miss Williams had joined a parade, which brought the centre of Leeds to a standstill as it made its way to the war memorial in Victoria Gardens.

The parade then went on to The Light, on The Headrow, for a service, a Parade of Standards, prayers and the Last Post was also played.

They were joined by Maureen Bland, the mother of 21-year-old Signaller Wayne Bland from Leeds, who was killed by a Taliban suicide bomber in 2008, as special guests for the launch of the annual appeal, which helped to raise more than £1.6 million across South and West Yorkshire last year.

Volunteers are needed to help with the campaign, call 0800 085 5924.