The Unremembered – World War One’s Army of Workers community groups took part in The People’s Procession – A Nation’s Thank You on Remembrance Day, 2018. In a final culmination of The Unremembered wreath making project, each community group who made a commemorative wreath were invited to participate in the procession and to lay their wreath at the Cenotaph, London.
The 120 community members gathered at Royal Over-Seas-House where the wreaths were displayed before joining the procession of 10,000 members of the public, war veterans, military and the Royal Family. This was a fantastic opportunity for groups from all over the United Kingdom to come together and share their knowledge and experiences of commemorating the Labour Corps. Two members of Catching the Past, a participating group from Scotland, were interviewed on the BBC Live television coverage whilst other groups were spoken to by various newspaper journalists.
The brightly coloured wreaths commemorating the Labour Corps stood out vibrantly at the Cenotaph. Participating groups used a wide range of materials including found items on a beach in Scotland, crochet, Lego, mosaic and origami. The diverse range of groups who participated in the project was represented on Remembrance Day with Scouts and Brownies, school children, older people (including a 92 year old war veteran), community leaders and people with additional needs in attendance.
Quotes from community members who were involved in the day:
‘This is something [the children] are going to remember being a part of forever’
‘I’ve wanted to be in the Procession for years, I’m so excited to finally be here’
‘This is one of those once-in-a-lifetime moments’
‘It’s so great that everyone is being remembered, not just the soldiers’
‘Thank you so much, we never would have been able to be in something like this without [Big Ideas]’
The wreaths were admired by thousands of people in the following days as they laid by the Cenotaph Memorial.