Newport War Memorial in St Thomas’s Square has been given a new lease of life thanks to the Victoria Cross Trust. The Trust comprises of seven volunteers who travel around the country cleaning memorials and graves of those who have received the coveted Victoria Cross in exchange for donations.
It came about after Gary Newman from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission learnt the Trust were coming to the Island and asked if they would have time to clean the memorial during their trip. The Trust said they would, so Newport and Carisbrooke Heritage Society then worked alongside Gary and the Trust making the necessary arrangements.
Gary said,
“As a Newportonian, I was honoured to play a small part in the cleaning of the Newport Borough War Memorial by the amazing Victoria Cross Trust, who very kindly gave their time and expertise free of charge.
“Like many, I have several family members whose names are on the memorial, including my grandfather who was killed on The Somme in 1916. So to see it returned to its former glory was quite emotional.”
The clean took four hours and the Trust were able to access the top of the memorial thanks to Steve from Four Corners Cleaning who kindly provided and operated his cherry picker free of charge.
Ashley Webb, Chair of Newport and Carisbrooke Heritage Society said,
“The monument is looking fantastic and most importantly the names can now be clearly read. Our sincerest thanks go to the Victoria Cross Trust, Steve at Four Corners Cleaning, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service, Island Roads, Isle of Wight Council and also the surrounding businesses for their patience.”
If you would like to donate towards the Victoria Cross Trust so they can continue their work, please visit the GofundMe Page.
News shared by Lucy on behalf of Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council. Ed
