Groups across Beaconsfield, led by St Mary and All Saints Church, worked together to create 8,000 poppies which form a cascade of the remembrance flower for commemorations in the town.
The poppies will be draped on the Celtic cross in the churchyard, facing the war memorial. The cross commemorates those fallen that had no named grave. The display is a replacement of a cascade which was originally created during lockdown in 2019, along with three others, when the church was inspired by the ceramic poppies at the Tower of London and a Cornish village which used knitted poppies in their commemorations.
The Revd Lucy Fyfe-Jamieson said: "We are blessed in Beaconsfield with a community that is passionate in their commitment to honour those that have served. The displays are really powerful and it's wonderful that they will reach so many people and help them engage and remember."
After three Remembrance seasons in the rain, the lockdown cascade, which was displayed outdoors on the cross, was in need of a refresh. By this time the poppies had become a landmark in the town's remembrance so the call went out for community organisations to get involved. Individuals crocheted, knit and natter groups got busy, and several felt poppy making workshops for children run by different community groups created thousands of freshly made poppies.
St Mary’s is now focusing on remembering the 80-year anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Youth groups have generated displays commemorating different key points in the run up to the end of the war. Starting with D-Day in June and running through to VJ Day 2025. The new call to the community is for peace doves, which will form a suspended display in church next year.
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