Lekroop Kaur and Peta Elliott from Tauranga Intermediate. Photo / Nicola Baxter
Lekroop Kaur and Peta Elliott from Tauranga Intermediate. Photo / Nicola Baxter
Hundreds of large-scale poppies, painted by students from local intermediate schools, will be placed around the cenotaph at Memorial Park for the commemoration of the centenary of Armistice Day at 11am on November 11.
This moving tribute is a collaboration between Tauranga City Council, The Incubator Creative Hub and schoolsin Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty with 320 poppies providing an emotive setting for the marking of the centenary of Armistice Day.
Peta Elliott, Xara Murray, Lekroop Kaur and Grace Gibson from Tauranga Intermediate are taking part in the poppy project, which aims to engage students in the history and meaning of Armistice Day.
"After four horrific years of tragedy and suffering, World War I came to an end with the signing armistice between Germany and the allied countries on November 11, 1918. On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month the gory battlefields fell silent.
"As a group of keen artists, we've recreated the poppies that lay amongst the fallen soldiers who died while fighting for their country's rights. We have used a bright red colour to represent the blood of the wounded and dead soldiers. Each poppy has been made unique like all the soldiers on the battlefields risking their lives for the generations to come."
Come together and commemorate Armistice Day on November 11 at Memorial Park:
Armistice Centenary Service Sunday, November 11, 2018 at 11am The city's official Armistice Centenary service will begin with a "march on" at 10.45am, led by the Tauranga Pipe Band. A minute's silence will be observed at 11am, followed by a karakia, a welcome by mayor Greg Brownless, prayers and scripture readings, and the Roll of Honour with local students laying poppies and rosemary on the corresponding 109 white crosses.
Field of Remembrance Friday, November 9 to Friday, November 16. Visit the Field of Remembrance with 109 named crosses representing Tauranga's men who died in the First World War.
Homecomings: From Tauranga to the Trenches Friday, November 9 to Monday, November 12 Explore the stories of our soldiers who made it back to Aotearoa in this unique exhibition.
Armistice Poppy installation Sunday, November 11 to Friday, November 16.
