Appeal to help honour every fallen Hartlepool hero from First and Second World Wars

Jaime Horton with named crosses ahead of the Hartlepool Field of Remembrance

The Hartlepool Field of Remembrance Project is planning to plant hundreds of small wooden crosses around the town war memorial in Victory Square with each one dedicated to a named individual who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

But project leaders need more money to pay for the crosses from the Royal British Legion to ensure everyone is included in the impressive display.

And they need your help to plant them in Victory Square on Saturday, November 9.

Jaime Horton and Dan Threadgill with poppy net ahead of the Hartlepool Field of Remembrance

Jaime Horton, of the project, said: “The funding side is paramount. None of it is council funded, it is all done through goodwill through donations and volunteers to put this on.

“We have been very fortunate with materials donated by different companies but the crosses cost £1.80 each and we have to purchase them from the Royal British Legion.

“Without the funds we are not going to have enough money to purchase all the crosses to remember each fallen soldier.”

This is the second year that the volunteers have created a field of remembrance.

The act of remembrance dates back to 1928 when a group of disabled veterans planted poppies around a cross in the grounds of St Margaret’s Church in Westminster.

Small wooden crosses with a poppy at the centre of each, which are still used today, were created in 1931.

Last year, 1,750 of them in memory of Hartlepool’s First World War casualties as part of the war’s centenary commemorations.

This year, project organisers are hoping to extend it to include Second World War heroes.

Two large nets featuring hundreds of hand knitted poppies are also due to form part of the display.

A third net will be displayed at the Headland’s Heugh Battery Museum along with 130 specially made wooden silhouettes of figures – one for each person killed in the bombardment of the town in 1914.

To donate to the appeal, go to the Hartlepool Field Of Remembrance 2019 page at gofundme.com

And to help plant the crosses meet at the memorial in Victoria Road from 10am on Saturday.