The Montague Grove sign was adorned with poppies and wreaths as Anzac Day approached. Photo / Supplied.
The Montague Grove sign was adorned with poppies and wreaths as Anzac Day approached. Photo / Supplied.
Montague Grove resident Leonie Worsley reports on an Anzac Day service at Montague Grove this year.
With large gatherings banned as part of New Zealand's fight against Covid-19, it was going to be a very different Anzac Day this year.
Residents of Montague Grove in Stratford were still determined tomark the day.
On Friday, the day before Anzac Day, many households were busy making poppies, wreaths and lanterns to show their respect. Poppies appeared outside houses on the lawns all along the street. Some of the wreaths and poppies were placed on the Montague Grove sign on the street.
At 6am on Anzac Day, as dawn started breaking, residents began to gather. Each stayed in their own household bubble, standing at the end of individual driveways under the watchful gaze of Mt Taranaki.
We listened to Defence Minister Ron Mark read the Ode of Remembrance on the radio, followed by The Last Post. Each of us stood silently, remembering the sacrifice of the Anzacs who had given so much so that we could live in freedom.
Then slowly our bubbles began to disappear back into our own homes, and the street was empty once again.
