A BUILDING society has thrown its weight behind an appeal to create a memorial to the men who served in the Durham Light Infantry in their home county.

The statue, planned for a site yet to be determined in Durham City, will symbolise the moment when DLI buglers sounded the ceasefire in Korea in 1953 – and is a replica of a memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The Darlington Building Society backed an appeal for the original memorial by launching an affinity mortgage - and for each completion the sum of £250 was donated to the appeal.

The society also donated a sum for each vote made by members at its annual general meeting.

The two initiatives helped the society to donate about £17,000 to the Memorial Appeal, making it one of the biggest individual donors to the memorial unveiled last summer.

The DLI are now planning a second memorial in Durham city centre and again Darlington Building Society is keen to help out the campaign – also backed by The Northern Echo.

A new affinity mortgage has been launched and as with the earlier product, for each completion the society will donate £250 to the Appeal.

The new mortgage is available up to 85 per cent loan to value and is discounted from the society’s standard variable rate until July 31, 2017. Product and completion fees are just £374.

Jim Morrell, district manager based at the society’s Bishop Auckland branch, said: “The society takes great pride in supporting community projects and we feel it is fitting that there should be a local memorial to such a famous local regiment as the DLI.”

Appeal co-ordinator Colonel Arthur Charlton said: “We were most grateful for the contribution made by Darlington Building Society for the first memorial to the DLI and we look forward to their support towards the second memorial.

“They certainly live up to their reputation of looking after local interests.”

The appeal has raised about £6,000, while organisers are awaiting the final figures on the sale of the regiment’s regimental silver, which realised a hammer price of £62,560.

To donate to the appeal, write to The DLI Memorial Appeal, The Rifles Office, Elvet Waterside, Durham, DH1 3BW, with cheques made payable to the Regimental and Chattels Charity of the former DLI.