Lilian Faithfull Care is paying tribute to its former and current residents who have served and fought in the armed forces, this Remembrance Day 2021.
Staff and residents at Lilian Faithfull Care homes across the county honoured the two-minute silence at 11am on Thursday 11 November 2021.
Residents have been reminiscing and remembering their loved ones, as well as creating artwork inspired by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields, with help from activity co-ordinators Hannah at St Faith’s and Beata at Faithfull House.
Many of its residents have served in the armed forces or contributed to war efforts – including current Astell House resident Flight Lieutenant Derek Tapson, who served with 197 Typhoon Squadron, which was heavily active on D-Day in Normandy and who received the French Government’s Legion D’Honneur for his role in liberating France from occupation.
As well as former residents Terence Loughlin, who helped keep the Lancaster bombers flying during World War II; Mary Powell, who joined the RAF at age 17 in 1941 and trained in codes and cipher work at Bletchley Park; and Doreen Brett who, at age 16, went straight from school to working at a factory making aircraft instruments used during the Second World War.
Through its Remarkable Lives project, the Gloucestershire elderly care charity aims to preserve the legacy of its residents for generations to come.
The charity has also been sharing the words of Stroud-born poet, John Maxwell Edmunds, as part of its Remembrance Day activities: ‘When you go home, tell them of us and say, for your tomorrow, we gave our today.’
For more information about Lilian Faithfull Care and its Remarkable Lives project, visit lilianfaithfullcare.co.uk.
