Residents pay their respects Crowd gathers at refurbished memorial
Blantyre and Hamilon West residents turned-out in force for a Remembrance Sunday service at the restored Auchentibber War Memorial.
A crowd thought to be more than 100 strong came together at the recently refurbished Sydes Brae monument and paid their respects to all those killed in conflict.
Young children and senior citizens were among those who braved the cold as the community marked the centenary of armistice.
Ministers Sarah Ross of Blantyre Old Parish Church and Steven Younger of High Blantyre Baptist Church led the ceremony at the Auchentibber Memorial.
Built in the aftermath of the first world war and funded by residents who lost close relatives and friends, the memorial had sadly been badly damaged by the passage of time. Council teams carried out extensive work over recent months to save it from ruin.
Large-scale repairs to crumbling masonry, broken tarmac and overgrown woods ensured it provided a fitting setting for this year’s remembrance and will be in appropriate condition for decades to come.
Councillors Mary Donnelly (SNP), Mark Mcgeever (Conservative) and Bert Thomson (Labour) stood sideby-side to lay a wreath on behalf of the local authority.
Councillor Donnelly read a poem dedicated to those lost in war. Afterwards, she said: “I would like to thank everyone from the communities of Auchentibber, Blantyre, Hillhouse and Earnock who supported the service of remembrance for the men of Auchentibber.
“It was particularly poignant not only because of the hundredth anniversary of the armistice, but also because of the refurbishment of the memorial. Thanks to the War Memorial Trust and South Lanarkshire Council who raised the monies to make this happen.
“The renovation was carried out to a very high standard and I would like to thank the workers and officials who made this possible. Because of this work the memorial will be in good order for future generations.”
Councillor added: “If the passing of a century shifts 1914/18 into a different, somehow more distant part of history, we must not let its lessons fade into the mists of time.
“With solemn and sincere gratitude we recall all those killed in service to others. Men and women who gave what was once aptly called that last full measure of devotion.
“Around the world people of many nationalities, faiths and traditions stand in the same silent tribute. Recognising the tragedy of each individual’s loss, mindful of the terrible cost of conflict, and hopeful for a future in which it is finally consigned to the past.
“We the living owe a debt that can never be repaid. But we will remember them.”
Meanwhile, St John Ogilvie High School pupil and bugler Jacob Duffy (below) took part in Battle’s Over, an international commemoration marking 100 years since the guns fell silent at the end of World War I.
The youth was on hand at 6.55pm to sound the Last Post with his trumpet at the David Livingstone Memorial Bridge in Blantyre, before beacons were lit in a tribute called Beacons of Light, signifying the light of peace that emerged from the darkness of four years of war at 7pm.