Twenty surviving veterans have been presented with special silver poppies to mark their service in World War Two.
They were presented with the poppies, which were made by County Down artist Sarah McAleer, in a ceremony in Bangor Castle on Friday.
All of the veterans range in age from 93 to 103 and live in the Ards and North Down Borough Council area.
They had served in forces including the Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force (RAF) and Women’s Royal Naval Service.They were presented to the veterans by the Ards and North Down Mayor Bill Keery and children from Bangor Central Integrated Primary School.
Maureen Lightbody joined the Women’s Royal Naval Service straight from school at the age of 18 in 1943.
As her mother was a young widow, she was stationed in Bangor where she had to signal code to ships entering and leaving Belfast Lough.
She would signal to ships in morse code using an Aldis lamp.
Among her most enduring memories of the war was the US Navy’s arrival in Bangor ahead of D-Day.
“All the big battleships from America were in Bangor,” she said.
“On D-Day 40 ships left Belfast Lough overnight – it was unbelievable, it was some sight.
“I feel quite guilty because my role wasn’t war but it was part of the war and it was important.”
Association of Wrens and the
Women of the Royal Naval Services
Lanyard House, Scott Road
HM Naval Base
Portsmouth, PO1 3LU
Registered Charity No. 257040
You can help support the work of the Association of Wrens by making a donation.
© Copyright 2021 Association of Wrens - Privacy Policy Website developed by Foster & Scott
Cookie | Duration | Description |
---|---|---|
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics | 11 months | This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". |
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional | 11 months | The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". |
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary | 11 months | This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". |
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others | 11 months | This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. |
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance | 11 months | This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". |
viewed_cookie_policy | 11 months | The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data. |