War memorial plans for Upchurch
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by Hayley Robinson
Thoughts are being sought on a new
war memorial in Upchurch.
Philip Newbery and Mike Gunnill,
who both live in the village, came up with the idea while chatting
over a pint in The Crown Pub two months ago.
While there is a plaque inside St
Mary’s Church bearing the names of the people from the village who
lost their lives during the First World War, the two men say they’d
like to see one erected in the centre of the village.
They envisage the memorial being
about six to seven feet tall but are unsure about the design or
where it would be located. It’s estimated it will cost in the
region of £6,000 with the money coming from fundraising events,
donations and grants.
Mr Newbery, who runs the Suffield
bed and breakfast, The Street, said: "We do have the plaque but
it’s in the church so you can’t see it when you drive through the
village. We hold a big Armistice day service in the village so it
would be nice to have something to focus it on."
Mr Gunnill, of Woodruff Close, is
in contact with David Hughes, from Ashford, who has spent the last
50 years helping a number of Kentish villages record their war
dead.
Mr Newbery added: "We’re waiting on
him to come back to us with a definitive list of names of those who
died but he won’t release those to us until he’s absolutely certain
everyone is on there."
Once they receive the list it will
go up on the village website ‘Upchurch Matters’ for residents to
see.
Mr Newbery added: "That way if
anyone knows something we don’t we can get it sorted. It would be a
disaster if we did it and it was wrong.
"This isn’t going to happen over
night. We’re taking it one step at a time.
"If we get enough support we will
hold a public meeting so people can discuss what’s the best way
forward.
"We won’t start fundraising until
people decide it’s a good idea."
Anyone with any comments about the
memorial are asked to email mikegunnill@mac.com For more
information visit http://www.upchurchmatters.co.uk/index.html
Wednesday, February 08 2012
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