Saint Nicholas Church will be holding a Remembrance Service this Sunday 11th November 2018 at 10.45am, which this year marks the 100th anniversary since the end of the First World War.
Poppies knitted or crocheted are welcome. If anyone can help to create them for the Church, they can be used in future services. Community Reporter Sindy Santos has collected 11 facts about Remembrance Day:
11 Facts About Remembrance Day
- Remembrance Day is a memorial day which takes places on the second Sunday of November each year to remember and pray for those who have served in the military or died in war and have committed themselves to work together for unity and reconciliation.
- It is commemorated on November 11th, at 11.00am which is the 11th month, 11th day, and the 11th hour, the time and date in 1918 when the guns fell silent in World War 1, putting an end to hostilities.
- The Poppy is used for Remembrance Day as a symbol of the blood spilled in the war. That is why it is also known as Poppy Day.
- The Poppy was one of the first flowers to bloom on the battlefields of Flanders during World War 1. They grew over the graves of soldiers in Flanders, Belgium.
- They became a symbol following the famous poem “In Flanders Fields”, written by the Canadian John McCrae during the First World War.
- Although some people say men should wear the Poppy on the left and women on the right, like a badge or brooch, the Queen however wears hers on the left, close to the heart. Others say that the leaf should point to 11 o’clock. It is a matter of personal choice whether someone chooses to wear a poppy, as the Royal British Legion say the “Best way to wear a poppy is simply with pride”.
- In Scotland, poppies can be bought from Poppy Scotland. The money raised goes to the Scottish Poppy Appeal and is used to provide life-changing support to the Armed Forces community living in Scotland.
- Remembrance Day is celebrated by the British and around 50 member states of The Commonwealth of Nations, former territories of the British Empire.
- Remembrance Day is usually marked with a moment or two of silence at 11:00am, on November 11th.
- The Royal Family gather at The Cenotaph in Whitehall, London for a memorial service which is televised. The Queen lays a wreath and other tributes are also placed.
- Remembrance Day is an opportunity to pay respect and honour to those who lost their lives in the war. It also gives people a chance to consider the cost of war.
You can find out more about St Nicholas’ Service on Facebook here.
Story submitted by Sindy Santos
