Why Remember

At the end of World War I the residents of Capel St Mary raised funds in memory of those local men who had lost their lives in the conflict. The money was not used to build a memorial but instead, given to Ipswich Hospital, to help treat the wounded.

The absence of a permanent memorial in Capel St Mary led in 2015, to the formation of the Capel St Mary War Memorial Trust. This is being administered by a committee of local people.  The committee has two objectives in connection with the project it has undertaken;

The raising of a permanent and fitting memorial to ensure that the sacrifices made by the fallen of Capel St Mary and the surrounding area are properly recognized

The raising of awareness within the community, particularly the younger element, of the stories behind the events of the time and the local people involved

The committee is seeking a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund in connection with the second objective. This part of the project will involve significant research and the results will in due course be published in the form of a book to be distributed to the local community and an online resource. The committee is also planning an exhibition to coincide with the dedication of the memorial on 11th November 2018, the 100th Anniversary of the Armistice marking the moment when the guns fell silent.

The Heritage Lottery Fund will not contribute towards the raising of the memorial itself hence the need to seek the support of the local community. The committee has already received support from the organisations and the letter received from the Parents Fundraising committee of Capel St Mary Primary School summed up the spirit of those helping. It referred to the children’s efforts giving them a sense of pride for years to come in helping towards such an important feature for our village.