Faversham Town Council to launch a virtual VE Day to commemorate 75th anniversary
The 75th anniversary of VE Day takes place on Friday 8th May, a day that has been designated as a special bank holiday.
The Council hopes the community will get behind its plans for the special anniversary to be marked through social media, online activities and an invitation for people in the town to decorate their windows and homes. It is hoped that there will also be an opportunity for community singing!
The town had planned to commemorate VE Day with Proms in the Market Place and a civic service at the parish church. Due to the coronavirus crisis, these were cancelled.
The virtual VE Day will invite the town to commemorate the anniversary by sharing stories, photographs or memorabilia from of the time and inviting those residents who remember VE Day to record their memories, creating an online exhibition.
Some local businesses are also helping by creating videos to illustrate life in Faversham during the 1940s with Bangers and Balls creating WWII themed recipes. It is hoped that other businesses in the town will also want to mark the event and local poets are being asked to record their work.
Online activities are being created with ideas and templates for window displays and activities. The song We’ll Meet Again has been chosen by the Legion to commemorate the anniversary and it is hoped there will be interest to create a town singalong and video online.
The Rev Simon Rowlands and the mayor of Faversham are to record messages to remember the sacrifices that were made in order to win the victory.
The Mayor of Faversham, Cllr Alison Reynolds, commented: “Although we are unable to have the events we had planned, we hope that we can still mark this important occasion. We have tried to get the balance between commemorating the anniversary appropriately and everyone’s current circumstances.
“It is the same sense of community that saw us through difficult times in the past that is helping get us through the current crisis we are facing. People have been volunteering , taking care of each other and the VE Day anniversary commemorates that same spirit. We hope that the community will join together to mark this occasion.”
Tom Gates, President of the Faversham Royal British Legion, gave his support to the project commenting: “’The Faversham Branch of The Royal British Legion welcomes these innovative plans to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of VE Day. We will not allow the current crisis to dim our determination to mark this significant and important event.’
