Ideas wanted for Save the Children centenary garden in Ellesmere
Families are being offered a chance to help design part of a new garden feature to celebrate the centenary of the Save the Children charity, founded by two Ellesmere sisters.
The garden, which will be laid out alongside the town’s mere, will commemorate the pioneering achievements of Eglantyne Jebb and her sister, Dorothy Buxton who launched the international aid agency in 1919 to help children left starving in central Europe at the end of the First World War.
It will include a landmark art installation, together with an intricate labyrinth walkway symbolising the harrowing journeys made by displaced children fleeing conflicts across the globe over the past century.
Two leading sculptors are being commissioned to create the art installation near the main entrance to Ellesmere’s Cremorne Gardens.
And now local people are being asked to come up with ideas for the labyrinth.
A special art workshop will be held at Ellesmere library between 10am and midday on November 2 when parents and children can try out different designs, discover more about the ancient symbol and put forward their own labyrinth patterns.
Similar workshops are planned early in the new year at seven local schools where dozens of pupils have already been involved in the centenary project, led by volunteers from the Ellesmere Sculpture Initiative in partnership with local councils and other community organisations.
Impressive
Trudi Graham, the group’s artistic co-ordinator said: “Earlier this year we held art and writing sessions at the schools when we asked children to imagine what it would be like if they were suddenly forced to leave their homes because of war - where whey would go, what they would take with them and how they would find food and shelter.
“Their response in words and pictures was touching and impressive. Now, we’re taking the exercise a step further by asking children to think about ideas to develop a labyrinth. Hopefully, this will provide more inspiration for what people will see when the whole art installation and the new garden area are completed next spring.
“We want it to be a poignant reminder of the suffering that so many refugee children have faced in places such as Syria and Yemen. and how the visionary efforts of Eglantyne Jebb and her sister, Dorothy have resulted in Save the Children providing much-needed aid and support.”
Nearly 40 community events and activities have already been held since the sculpture group launched the centenary project nearly a year ago with financial backing from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The final phase of the project will also include a seminar at Ellesmere College on April 1, where leading speakers will examine the legacy of Eglantyne Jebb and discuss some of the issues facing Save the Children and other aid agencies in helping victims of war, famine and climate change.
Young people from local schools, colleges and regional universities will be given the opportunity to take part in the seminar.
