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This is a really important weekend
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It's Remembrance Sunday tomorrow, a day to remember the service and sacrifice
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of all of those that have defended our freedoms and protected our way of life
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that allows us to be here today, speaking our minds and saying what we want to you
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Communities have been getting creative with raising money. We've seen thousands of handmade crocheted and knitted poppies
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being hung from a church in West Yorkshire town by the Chatternick Community Group
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We see post box toppers everywhere and we've seen the opening of a garden of remembrance
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in Haddington by former British Army officer. And joining us is that very officer, Stuart Crawford
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Stuart, welcome to us tonight on this very special weekend. As you can see, I'm wearing my crocheted poppy
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but we had a picture of you there in a Garden of Remembrance
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Do you want to tell us about that? Yes, good evening and thank you for the introduction
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The Garden of Remembrance, it's the first year that we have done it
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in the town of Haddington, which is a market town in East Lothian
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about 20 miles from the centre of Edinburgh, where I've lived for 25, 26 years now
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And it came about through happy circumstances. The garden is a charity garden, and I happen to be a trustee of the garden
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And my best friend, my former comrade from Army days, is the managing director of the Poppy Factory in Edinburgh
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where poppies are still made by hand by veterans, disabled veterans. And we were discussing the fact that there was a big garden of remembrance in Edinburgh on Princess Street which is a very well one And over a cup of tea or it actually may have been something stronger we thought well
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you know, I'm a trustee of the garden in Haddington. Why don't we try and do the same thing
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down there? And so it has come to pass. And over the past week, we've had a variety of people
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coming through, mainly local, donating to Poppy Scotland and planting crosses in memory of their friends and family
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who sadly didn't come back from the various conflicts. So it's been a hugely interesting and in many ways poignant
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and moving experience for me. And it may be the only time we do it
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but I'm hoping that the town will continue with it from here on in. So was it well received by the people around the town
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Yes, very much so. I mean, it always doesn't amaze me, but it always interests me that you'd think
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that 107 years of the First World War and 80 years on from the end of the Second World War
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memories would fade and people would lose interest. But my experience is it's completely the opposite
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And the younger generation, young people still in their late, and early 20s, seemed to have a sort of revived interest
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in everything about the poppy and what it commemorates and the events, the dreadful events in many ways
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that brought it about. So it has proved popular. There's always a slow start from something that's new
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a new initiative, because people have to rely eventually on word of mouth getting out there
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But I've been really pleased with the turnout so far
