Showing gratitude in Colerne (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Showing gratitude in Colerne

10:00am Friday 6th July 2012 in Corsham By Craig Jones

Hundreds of people came together in Colerne to mark Armed Forces Day with the national event holding a special significance for many of the villagers.

Around 600 people attended events in the village which began with a march of servicemen, ex-servicemen and children’s uniformed groups into the grounds of Colerne Primary School.

This was then followed by a parade and a flypast which featured three Grob Tutors.

Armed Forces Day, being celebrated for the third time in Colerne, is a cause close to many of the villagers’ hearts as the 21st Signal Regiment (Air Support) are based at Azimguhr Barracks, in Colerne.

Colerne Primary School headteacher Rob Parsons said 47 per cent of the school’s pupils come from serving families and it was an honour to mark the day.

He said: “It was a brilliant day and we had a big turnout. I think it is important for us to mark this event as serving families make up such a huge part of our community and we wanted to show our gratitude to our servicemen.”

After the village parade, which featured members of the Armed Forces, the Royal British Legion, uniformed personnel and youth groups, there was a fete held at the school, in Quarry Lane which featured another flypast.

Mr Parsons said: “At about 3pm we were honoured to receive a flypast from the Red Arrows, who made a quick detour to their routes to go over Colerne and that really made the day.

“Everyone really seemed to enjoy it and we just about managed to avoid the dodgy weather.”

At the fete there were military vehicles, a tug of war and a flight simulator as well as stalls collecting donations for Help for Heroes.

The event also helped raise funds for Colerne Primary School which are still being tallied.