Remembrance Sunday is always a moving occasion but has been even more so this year as we commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, and also mark the end of the involvement of British forces in combat operations in Afghanistan. This year I joined the Mayor of Folkestone, Cllr Alan North, for the service at the town War Memorial at the top of the Road of Remembrance. A large crowd gathered on the Leas for the service where the two minutes silence was honoured and wreaths were laid in memory of those who have given their lives fighting for freedom in the service of our country. In the evening I returned to the Leas for a special service at the Step Short First World War Centenary arch. At 7pm, a bugler, Bryan Walker from Deal, played the last post at the arch to remember those who served in the First World War, and the millions of soldiers who passed through Folkestone during that conflict. This service has taken place every Sunday evening for fourteen weeks since Prince Harry formally opened the arch on 4th August. Hundreds of people joined us at the Arch for this service, and have done so over the previous weeks when this simple and poignant act of commemoration has been performed. I hope that this is something we can continue beyond Remembrance Sunday.
On Saturday morning I was also at the Step Short arch to greet a party of over sixty students from St Mary’s High School in Herefordshire, who were visiting Folkestone as part of their trip to the First World War battlefields in Belgium and France. The school has taken students on this tour every year for twenty five years, and I went on it myself when I was a pupil there. I was delighted to be able to give them a tour of the arch, the Road of Remembrance and the Step Short visitors centre in the harbour; where volunteers were giving advice on how to research the war records of family members. Since the Arch was opened in August many groups from around the country have visited the town to pay their respects and to follow in the footsteps of the soldiers who marched down the Road of Remembrance. I have noticed as well that a number of personal tributes to family members who fought in the war have been placed on the railings and wall around the arch.
Sarah and I, along with our children Claudia and Hugo, also attended the Youth Festival of Remembrance at the Leas Cliff Hall on Saturday evening. This was a spectacular show of singing, poetry, dance and display and my congratulations go to everyone involved in the production. I would particular like to thank Olly Simpson from the Folkestone and Hythe Sea Cadets who has been the driving force behind the festival, which has raised tens of thousands of pounds for the Royal British Legion over the last six years.
