The remarkable life of a Pembrokeshire veteran will be celebrated in the county today Saturday November 11.

The VC Gallery in Pembroke Dock will celebrate the life of Second World War veteran Ted Owens in a Remembrance Day event.

Mr Owens, who died at the age of 98 in July this year, was one of Wales’ last D Day veterans.

Remembered as a ‘true gentleman’ he shared his wartime experiences with the world as part of an award-winning ITV documentary, Lest We Forget.

Ted, a sniper with the Royal Marine Commandos, landed on Sword Beach on June 6, 1944 in the first wave of advances on Normandy.

He was injured in a mortar attack and spent two and half months in hospital.

Upon recovery, the Pembroke Dock hero returned to his unit and swiftly set off through France and Belgium, and was wounded twice more in battles in the Netherlands.

He then fought in Dunkirk as part of a relief unit and during the Battle of the Bulge alongside the Americans.

Ted was wounded on three separate occasions, including by a piece of bullet which entered his windpipe.

The memorial day will include the unveiling of a portrait of Ted by portrait artist Lloyd Lewis, which has been donated to the gallery by Ted’s friend and VC Gallery supporter David O’ Toole.

“For the last ten years we helped look after the welfare of Ted,” said VC Gallery founder Barry John. “Ted came in for food and support. He joined our reading club we took him for hospital visits and enlisted the support of Blind Veterans UK when he started losing his sight. When he couldn’t get out so easily we visited him at home.

“Pembroke Dock and Pennar were a great part of his life when he left the forces and we wanted to commemorate him in the community.”

Today the school hall in the VC Gallery’s Pembroke Dock home, at the former St Mary’s Catholic school, Pennar will be named the Ted Owens Memorial Hall on Saturday.

There will be an exhibition with photographs of Ted, a video about his life, and artefacts from his life and a booklet of his stories on sale with all proceeds going to the VC Gallery.

The VC Gallery will warmly welcome members of the public to its Pembroke Dock base where there will also be a chance to meet a veteran, see art exhibitions produced by many of the VC gallery’s project participants, see the gallery’s mobile museum with artefacts from the world wars and modern conflicts.

There is also an exhibition about HMS Glenart Castle, a First World War hospital ship that was sunk by a German U Boat in 1918.

The event runs between 11am and 3pm and all are welcome to attend.