 Today, I attended a short but moving Armistice service led by the Reverend David Tudor in the Knightswick Centre on Canvey.
My family and I have attended several Remembrance events in Castle Point over the last week. Last weekend I went to the Salvation Army's Festival of Remembrance at the Hadleigh Temple. On Sunday I had the honour of putting down a wreath at the War memorial in Benfleet. My husband took our son to watch the wreath laying and parade on Canvey.
I have signed up to support the Royal British Legion's "do your bit" campaign. Like so many people who want to "do their bit" to support our forces and remember the fallen, it can never feel enough.
Across the UK this year, the spotlight has inevitably been on Afghanistan. A lot of people are reflecting on the human cost of this war, with the almost unwatchable scenes at Wootten Bassett yesterday, and on previous days. However, it is shocking to also reflect that there has only been a single year since the end of WW2 in which a British soldier has not be lost in conflict somewhere around the world.
This year, of course, there are no WW1 veterans at the Cenotaph. This underlines the importance of remembering previous wars and the fallen, as the veterans of these conflicts grow older and less mobile. We can be proud of our community in Castle Point, that there were so many people, especially children and young people wearing poppies, or collecting for the British Legion, or doing mad charity feats for Help for Heroes.
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