A poem by a nine-year-old Chester pupil is destined for what is possibly one of the best known war memorials in the world.
The Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, often referred to simply as the Menin Gate, bears the names of more than 54,000 soldiers who died before August 16, 1917 and who have no known grave.
During the conflict hundreds of thousands of servicemen of the British Empire marched through the Belgian town of Ypres’s own Menin Gate on their way to the battlefields. The memorial now stands as a reminder of the fallen who have no known resting place.
The war poem has been written by Lola Bickley, overall winner of the ‘Malpas 100 Years On’ poetry competition. Her poem is to be displayed on a wreath laid at the Menin Gate by motorcyclists from the Royal British Legion Riders Branch (RBLR).
Lola’s poem was selected as overall winner from three finalists in the competition which received over 30 entries.
Judged by local historians and former teachers David and Jill Haynes 11 short poems were put forward for the final accolade.
All entries will be displayed in exhibitions over a commemoration weekend to be held in Malpas on November 9, 10 and 11.
Lola received her award at Malpas Alport primary school when head teacher Sarah Worthington gave her the surprise news that six motorcyclists from the RBLR had arrived to take her poem to Belgium.
She was joined by her family, representatives of the ‘Malpas 100 Years-On’ committee and school governors when she received a trophy and poppy paraphernalia from the RBLR in recognition of her success.
“When the Last Post Society in Ypres accepted an RBLR application to lay a wreath we wanted to engage with local communities to find a poignant poem to display on the wreath,” said Keith Ogden, Manchester county representative for the RBLR as he presented Lola’s trophy.
“We put the idea to our member, Sharon Jones, working with local schools in the Malpas area to broaden appreciation of ‘Those That Gave All – for their country’ and it went down a storm. We picked out Lola’s poem as powerful and thought provoking for a child of her age.”
The poetry competition, launched in February, was part of activities leading up to a spectacular three-day-event taking place in Malpas to mark the 100-year anniversary of the armistice.
Proud Mum and Dad, Sara and John Bickley with sister Megan joined in celebrations of Lola’s success in the competition alongside Grandad and Grandma Eric and Margaret Bickley with Auntie Cheryl Colburn.
The poem was inspired by stories shared of the family’s wartime loss of Lola’s great uncle James Bickley whose name is recorded on the memorial outside St Oswald’s Church in Malpas.
Chris Whitehurst, committee member and instigator of ‘Malpas 100-Years-On’ said: “We are delighted with the response to our poetry competition and very impressed by the high standard of entries.
“The aim of the weekend is to raise awareness today of what went on in war time and the entries will be used to share an appreciation of how much was given by those who fought for their country.”
The next event for Malpas 100 Years On will be on June at 7pm in the Jubilee Hall when award-winning Great War speaker Nigel Meyrick will be joined by experts to value local WW1 artefacts.
