Barry veteran’s praise for team who cleaned Cenotaph
A RETIRED Army Sergeant from Barry has praised staff and volunteers at the Memo Arts Centre who cleaned the Cenotaph in time for the VE Day commemorations on 8th May.
Jim Fletcher, 78, served in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment (Berkshire and Wiltshire), where he lost friends while on tours of Northern Ireland and Cyprus.
After leaving the army at the age of 27, Jim settled in Barry, where he spent 30 years in the police, which included a spell as liaison officer for schools in the Vale towards the end of his career.
The Barry Cenotaph, located outside the Memo Arts Centre, was unveiled in November 1932 to commemorate local people who lost their lives serving in the First World War. The monument has since been updated to acknowledge those who died in World War II and the Falklands War.
Built of reconstituted stone, the war memorial has inscriptions: “In proud memory of the men of Barry who fell in the Great War, 1914-1918, 1939-1945″ and “For freedom”. Panels on the base have inscriptions in English and Welsh.
In March, Jim spoke to the Glamorgan Star where he described the dirty state of the memorial and said he felt it was an insult to those who had given their lives.
Early last week, Jim was greeted with a pleasant surprise as he went past the memorial: “I was absolutely astonished by what I saw. The Cenotaph had been cleaned and the transformation was incredible.
“It looks stunning, and I was moved to tears. It was done in time for the 80th anniversary of VE Day, and that meant a huge amount to me,” he said.
The cleaning work was carried out by Jason Thomas and Dave Nicholson, who are both duty managers at the Memo Arts Centre, along with volunteer Norman Buckeridge.
Last Thursday morning, Jim and his brother Stanley, who also served as a private in the same regiment for six years, joined military veterans and others for a VE Day memorial service at the Barry Cenotaph, which was followed by coffee and cake.
Jim says he hopes the memorial will be regularly maintained: “I remember my mother-in-law telling a story about the efforts that were made to help pay for the Barry Cenotaph. She said that children helped create a line of old pennies a mile long, and the money went towards the fund.
“It was a bit of fun for the children, but it was also for a very special cause. We are now at an important point in our history as sadly the generation that fought in World War II is gradually leaving us, and it’s up to those of us who are left to properly honour them, along with sacrifices made by those who fought in the First World War and more recent conflicts.
“The war memorial looks very impressive at the moment, it really stands out and that’s how it should be. The VE Day commemorations were handled beautifully and we’ll be back to pay our respects again on the 80th anniversary of VJ Day on 15th August, and each year in November on Remembrance Sunday.
“But it’s also a monument that’s there all year round for local people and visitors to see, take a moment to read the names and reflect on their sacrifice.
“Barry now has a Cenotaph it can be proud of, and it looks as it’s supposed to, but I ask that the Memo Arts Centre please puts plans in place for regular maintenance so that it doesn’t decay into the state it was in prior to the recent cleaning.
“However, I want to be positive, and I’d like to pass on my profound thanks to the three gentlemen for the work they did. It means a lot to me, my brother, and so many other people in Barry.”
For more information about how to become a Memo Arts Centre volunteer, please visit memoartscentre.co.uk or email
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