Our place of contact is Poppies On The Green, SCAF (Shirehampton Community Forum), Public Hall, 32 Station Road, Shirehampton, Bristol, BS11 9TX. How did Poppies On The Green begin? It was September 2018 and no local commemoration was apparent to mark the 100th Anniversary of the end of WWI locally to compliment the local war memorial at the top of Park Hill and the annual Armistice service. I (Ka
thryn) had this mad idea of using The Green in Shirehampton and cover it in poppies. My step great grandfather Thomas was a soldier in WWI and was missing in action, presumed dead. He did return home in 1918 walking proudly down the street to the surprise, shock and delight of family and friends. He had been injured and had half his foot blown off in battle and taken as a prisoner of war. He was the inspiration for this as well as my Uncle Paddy and Uncle Tom who were in the armed forces during WWII along with my Uncle Bill and Uncle Ray who also joined the armed forces. All lived in Shirehampton. I approached Diane who was Chairperson for SCAF, (Shirehampton Community Action Forum) and Ash who is the Community Development Officer for SCAF with this idea and from there it grew into something special with the help of family, friends and the local communities within the four villages area who collected plastic bottles, cut them up and painted them. This is definitely a community project that belongs to all of us. We have people from our local communities of Shirehampton, Avonmouth, Sea Mills, Coombe Dingle, Lawrence Weston and Blaise (the last 3 villages don't appear as a location on FB but they are certainly included with us) who make poppies for our displays. Without all these communities coming together we would have no displays. Our local shops also display our upcycled poppies as well during November in remembrance. The main display is in Shirehampton Village on The Green, very close and inclusive of our local High Street. We also have additional smaller displays at Shirehampton Railway Station, just off the Portway in Station Road and also at The Daisy Field, The Portway. (The big field across the road from the Railway Station). The importance of The Daisy Field is that it played a role in WWI with the local Remount Station where horses were trained in the field and then shipped off to war via Avonmouth Docks. There is now the War Horse statue that is made out of 380 horseshoes standing in the field made by farrier & sculptor Jason Bagg and funds were raised to make this possible by Friends Of Lamplighters Marsh. It's installation took place on 16th September 2023. Poppies On The Green was originally meant to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI and remember all those who died in battle and those who were in battle and came home plus the animals from horses to mules to birds and dogs. This was in 2018. Additionally, everyone had a role to 'keep the home fire's burning. It was meant to be a one off display. We then decided to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the end of WWII in 2020 (and not even the coronavirus pandemic could stop us doing this and social distancing was adhered to.) Again to remember all those who died in battle and those who were in battle and came home as well as everyone who 'kept the home fire's burning' from the Home Guard, Air Raid Wardens to the Land Girls, Bevan Boys, factories, right through to the emergency services and the medical profession. At this time we added two silhouette soldiers called Reg & Les from WWI & WWII. They lived in Shirehampton and Reg was only 19 years old when he died in battle. They are named after Sally's - one of our volunteers - great uncle and grandad. Due to demand and people wanting to see the display happen every year it has now become an annual display with more poppies being added each year through the painting poppies sessions we run. The poppies are made out of plastic bottles and painted in red or purple acrylic paint by young and old alike who live in the four villages area. Our local schools also help out with this too. Much of the material used in the displays is upcycled. The red poppies are in line with the Royal British Legion to remember all in the armed services and civilians too (from WWI, WWII to present date) The purple poppies are for the animals who were in both world wars and still play a role today. This year, 2023, we are adding another two silhouette soldiers to the Poppies On The Green display called Paddy & Bill. More silhouettes will follow in time including a Bevan Boy and a Land Girl. We have ideas for another 8 silhouettes and continue to add more poppies too. Some of the High Street shops & businesses will also be part of the Poppies On The Green display for 2023. We can't do all the shops this year but we expect others will take part in 2024. What we do need is more volunteers to help with Poppies On The Green and maybe this is something that appeals to you. Just contact us with your details via our page, messenger, email or phone the office. We want to keep this display going for many years to come.
