Bench to be dedicated to the fallen

A special seat has been purchased by the Ludlow Memorial Fund and a site on the common overlooking the town has been made available by the Friends of Whitcliffe Common.

The Fund’s Margaret Edwards said “This year marks the centenary of the end of that awful war when so many died. This seat will be in memory of not only those who fell but all of those from Ludlow who served their country.”

All are welcome at the service at 2.30pm on Sunday (5), when the seat will be dedicated in a service of blessing led by the Rector of Ludlow, Reverend Kelvin Price.

Leon Bracelin, dressed in military uniform of the time, will read out a letter sent to family from the Front by a soldier. In it he writes about Whitcliffe.

Margaret said: “Anyone wanting to attend will be most welcome. This is a special occasion in memory of special people."

Ludlow Memorial Fund has already raised £9,000 which has been spent on a number of projects. These include placing the names of the fallen around the town centre memorial, together with plaques on trees at Ludlow School, the Millennium Green and St Leonard’s Churchyard.

The latter tree is in memory of the first Ludlow man killed on October 23 1914 – John Baron.

The seat was chosen after a member of the Fund committee spotted a similar one in Hereford. Its design includes the outlines of soldiers and poppies.

The Fund members have a number of other projects planned, said Margaret: a display is to be mounted in St Laurence’s Church between October 21 and November 12.

Photos of those who served would still be welcomed for this display, she added.

In 1919 a memorial tree was planted in Castle Gardens which has since died. This is to be replaced and a plaque placed with it.

“The research work that has gone into this by our members has been a really interesting and rewarding experience for all of us. We very much hope that townspeople, those with relatives who served, and others even if they didn’t, will come and share the results with us, either at the service or at the display in the church," added Margaret.