Scarf tribute to Falklands heroes
ASCARF project which arose out of a Falkland Islander’s desire to say thank you to the troops that freed her, is being supported in Rossendale.
On April 2, 1982, when Argentine troops invaded the British islands in the South Atlantic, Rachel Simons was living in Stanley.
Rachel is now a resident in Carlisle, but she has never forgotten the troops and the role they played in freeing the islands.
In 2017 she made her first scarf in the colours of the ribbon on the South Atlantic Medal, blue, green and white and gave it to a Royal Marine friend who had fought on the day the Argentines invaded.
In October 2020 she set up a Facebook group Scarves for Falklands Veterans and the fallen and Steve Butterworth, from Holcombe Brook, found out about the project.
A Falklands veteran himself, Steve served in the Royal Navy from 1976 to 1983 as a catering accountant on HMS Intrepid, but during the day he was a medic patching up the wounded, mainly Welsh Guards, from the Sir Galahad.
Steve said: “I found out about the group through a friend who served.
“Maria, my wife, has now made 14 scarves that have been given away to veterans through the page.
“I also make pens on a lathe and I used cut up pieces of wool in the medal colours, added resin and then built up the layers to make a pen. One of the pens I made sold for £155, which was donated to the South Atlantic Medal Association ’92.”
Steve now uses his woodturning skills to make penguins, gonks and pens for the volunteers who make the scarves as his way of saying thanks.
Rachel said: “My 11th birthday was on the 27th of
April and it was a huge day because that was when the Argentines took away and locked up a number of the local civilians.
“They took away the senior doctor and his wife who was also a doctor, his family and friends.
“That was also the day the Argentine’s decided overnight we would have to have blackouts over our windows and there was to be a curfew so no-one was allowed to walk the streets.
“For the duration of the war we lived in Stanley and we experienced all of the horrors of war; watching people being killed, watching a plane shot down, they trashed Stanley totally.
“What a joy when the liberators arrived and came into Stanley.
“There was cheering and excitement and that feeling of joy and gratitude really has never left me.
“So, in 2017 I made my first scarf and I gave it to a Royal Marine friend.
“Now more than 1,500 have been made.”
The Facebook group has 4,000 members with about 100 people making scarves, hats and woollen items.
She added: “The veterans do not just receive a scarf, they receive recognition of what they did; they receive a thanks when they didn’t even get thanks. It is recognition of what they did and permission to be a veteran.” ●● FOR more information visit Facebook Group Scarves for Falklands Veterans.