For over forty years Walsall Lions Club has attended the Remembrance Day Service at the Cenotaph in Walsall’s Town Centre to honour those who had lost their lives in conflict. In normal circumstances we would join those assembled at Walsall’s Town Hall, usually the President and one other member would attend and meet with members of the Armed Services, Local Councillors, M.P.s J.P.s etc. At the appointed time the Mayoral Party would move on to the Carless Memorial where the Mayor would lay a wreath on behalf of the Town. After this everyone moves on. On arrival at the Cenotaph there would be a service led by Local Clergy and a Two-minute Silence, followed by the last post and the Mayor then lays a wreath.
On several occasions when I was President, I had the honour of laying the Walsall Lions Wreath, and I found it to be a spine-chilling moment. After the service is over at the Cenotaph, the band strikes up as the Mayoral Party moves off to stand outside the Town Hall for the March Past, after which refreshments are served at the Mayor’s Parlour, giving time to catch up with people you’ve not seen for while and where appropriate giving a plug for Lions. This Remembrance Sunday was quite a different affair for us, as was it for thousands of people across the country because the Coronavirus pandemic meant things were going to be very different.
At our monthly Zoom meeting it was decided that the Poppy Wreath would be ordered as usual and since two of our members live in Pelsall, we would place our wreath at the Pelsall Cenotaph. So, on a cold and damp Remembrance Sunday afternoon we laid our wreath and stood for a few moments perusing the other wreaths. It was indeed a proud moment for us and our club, although not being the usual way of doing this, we were still filled with pride that during these difficult times, Walsall Lions was represented.
Like everyone else this year, it has been a very difficult seven months or so , but in particular, as a club, the last eighteen months has been a very tough and testing time, and just when things appeared to be getting better for us, the Pandemic hit, but in true Lion tradition Walsall Lions Club is still there giving donations to various groups, including Macmillan Cancer Care, Walsall Hospice, Breast Cancer. etc. We always stive to keep in touch with one another, as we all share the same hopes and fears for the future, but still with a desire to continue to Fund Raise as we always did. Unfortunately we are unable to do the fund raising we normally do due to Coronavirus restrictions and social distancing etc.
Normally at this time of the year we would be looking forward to doing our Christmas bucket collections, and also be planning our Christmas Meal and Yearly Charter Celebration, unfortunately this is obviously not possible at the moment, but the Lions moto is ‘WE SERVE’, and Walsall Lions continues to do this, even in these difficult times.
Lion John - Secretary
