To mark the 100th anniversary of the Armistice people from Penkridge, Stafford, covered their Methodist Church, Stafford, in poppies as part of a community arts project.
Almost 9,00 poppies cascaded from the church roof.
The project tipped its hat to the Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red in 2014 which had 888,246 handmade red ceramic poppies at the Tower of London.
The church was supported by community groups, inmates at the local prison, local schools, uniformed groups and individual members of the community.
Deacon Sue Culver said at the time, “The sheer scale of community involvement, the beauty of some of the poppies submitted, as well as the number of poppies, makes this project remarkable.”
It is worth looking back on the history of the days of remembering … On the 11th of November 1920 the body of an unnamed soldier was taken from Hyde Park up the Mall, past Buckingham Palace, watched by crowds paying their respects to the unknown dead of the First World War.
At 11 o’clock there was two minutes of silence as the procession arrived at a new war memorial on Whitehall.
Sadly, though, the traditional rituals of Remembrance Sunday have been diminished this year.
Indoor services are cancelled and at the Cenotaph, where normally 10,000 veterans gather, there will be just 26 former service men and women.
Wreaths will be laid by the Royal Family, senior politicians and the Armed Forces, but there will be no march past the memorial and strict social distancing measures will be in force.
Very sad.
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