From all reports the Grenfell Garden Club’s Poppy Project has been a huge success as a celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Armistice Day.
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The original idea was just to plant poppies around town so that they would flower at the right time. Many flowered early because of the dry season but there were still many plants in flower at the War Memorial for Sunday’s service.
The displays in the town’s roundabouts were often commented on. These comprised the timber crosses and metal silhouettes of soldiers by Mick Nealon and Barry Evans and the poppy sculptures by Anthony Douglas as well as the 20 small crosses made by Jim Dunlop.
Some of these are being gifted to the RSL for use in future celebrations. These displays are now being removed and stored. Grenfell would be one of very few towns in NSW where displays like these would be left unvandalised for such a long period, a quality which reflects so well on the town.
The “Poppies for Remembrance” exhibition at the Grenfell Art Gallery will remain open until Sunday November 25. Attendances at this exhibition have been extraordinary and it looks like being the most popular ever.
Everyone who knitted or crocheted any of the 4,000 poppies has added to its success and should feel very proud of their contributions.
Feedback has been invariably positive from local residents but also from business owners who have been happy to participate by making window space available.
In addition, congratulatory messages have been received from many visitors to the town, including several interstate visitors who had heard media or word-of-mouth reports and had gone out of their way to see it for themselves.
The Grenfell Garden Club would like to acknowledge the cooperation of residents, business owners, volunteers and the council in helping to make the Poppy Project such an outstanding success.
As stated above, its main purpose was to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day but the final outcome was also a great promotion for Grenfell. The Garden Club is grateful for all the many contributions.
Chris Lobb – President
Grenfell Garden Club