Shropshire schoolpupils commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day 2018 with cherry tree ceremonies

Cherry tree ceremonies have been held with four primary schools across Shropshire to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD), which this year fell on Saturday 27 January 2018. This links in to efforts by Shropshire Council to grow a cherry tree orchard of remembrance with local schools, with a different primary school hosting a tree planting ceremony every year since 2015.

The ceremonies involved schoolpupils from Bishop Hooper CofE School in Ashford Carbonell, Mereside CofE School in Shrewsbury, Trinity CofE in Ford, and Woodside Academy in Oswestry, in a week of activities covering the county. Members of the South Shropshire and Shrewsbury interfaith forums, and local clergy, supported the events with Shropshire Councillors and officers.

The main focus was two ceremonies held on the morning of Friday 26 January 2018. The first of these took place at Mereside CofE Primary School in the east of Shrewsbury, where the first tree was planted in 2015, and where it was measured by the pupils to see how well it was growing.

Mereside School’s tree,
Back row (L-to-R): Imam Sohayb Peerbhai, Mark Michaels, Reverend Ken Chippindale, Nicola Toms.
Front row (L-to-R): Ruby Hudson, Imogen Gwilt, Charlie Loughnane, Ross Dale-Patteson, Ethan Morgan.

Pupils at Trinity CofE Primary School in Ford then took part in a special assembly involving the whole school, where one of the pupils lit a candle, before the 2018 cherry tree was planted there with the help of Roger Evans, local Shropshire Councillor for Longden and chairman of Trinity CofE Primary School governors, and four of the pupils from the school.

The Trinity School tree in place.
Back row (L-R): Councillor Roger Evans, Mark Michaels, John Rowe, Imam Sohayb Peerbhai, Nicola Toms, Sue Mann, Sue Gaulton.
Front row (L-R): Revd Val Tait, Rory Ali-Maclachlan, Jasmine Tomlins, Charlie Thomas, Rhys Emberton.

Ceremonies took place alongside work within the schools focused on this year’s theme of “The Power of Words”, with pupils from both schools sharing the special letters and postcards that they had written to a Holocaust survivor as part of a national project focused on the theme.

The candle lighting in the Trinity CofE Primary School assembly, with Lois Dale from Shropshire Council, pupil Isabel Price, Mark Michaels, Imam Sohayb Peerbhai from the South Shropshire Interfaith Forum, and headteacher John Rowe.

Roger Evans said:

“It was a privilege to be able to hear what the children have been doing in the school here in Ford to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, and a pleasure to share this with Nicola Toms from the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. I know that the school will take great care of the 2018 Tree, along with the whole community here. I will certainly be taking a keen interest in its progress myself, and looking forward to the first flowers.”

Reverend Ken Chippindale from the Shrewsbury Interfaith Forum read a special prayer and helped to light a candle at Mereside, whilst local vicar Val Tait read the prayer at Trinity. Mark Michaels from the Jewish community and Imam Sohayb Peerbhai from the Muslim community talked with the children at both ceremonies.

Nicola Toms, the West Midlands Regional Support Worker for the national Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, was a welcome guest at both ceremonies.

Nicola said:

“I am so glad I was able to visit Shropshire this year and see the work you are developing year on year. Tree planting is a wonderful act of commemoration. Hearing primary school children express their thoughts in response to a survivor’s testimony was a real highlight. I look forward to 2019.”

The Friday ceremonies ended a week in which a tree planting ceremony was held with the South Shropshire Interfaith Forum and Councillor Viv Parry at Bishop Hooper School in south Shropshire on Monday 22 January. The tree in fact replaced the 2017 tree, which was dug up by rabbits, and was kindly donated by the South Shropshire interfaith Forum. The new tree is in a different spot at the school.

Joyce Barrow, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for communities, then took the lead in a ceremony at Woodside Academy on Tuesday 30 January. Mark Michaels travelled up to talk with pupils there, whilst Reverend John Chesworth read the special prayer and helped the four pupils to light a candle by the 2016 tree.

Joyce Barrow said:

“I am delighted to have been able to be involved in this approach to helping local children to think about the Holocaust and other genocides in a way that is age appropriate. It has been lovely to spend time with the children at Woodside and to see their tree growing so well. I hope that all the children involved at the schools will look out for their trees, and really think about the positive ways in which they can show care for each other and for the environment in everything that they do.” 

Further information

The background here is that the council is continuing efforts to grow a cherry tree orchard of remembrance across Shropshire, to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.

The council works closely with the South Shropshire Inter Faith Forum and the Shrewsbury Inter Faith Forum on this project, having been delighted to benefit from the input of members of both forums in previous years. Local Shropshire Councillors and officers from across the council are involved in the ceremonies.

A display ran from Wednesday 24 January to Friday 2 February in the foyer at Shirehall about the HMD trees that have been planted to date across the county. It featured a map to show the HMD trees, including the five planted with secondary schools last year, and the traditional orchards already recorded in Shropshire. The display also featured information about the 2018 theme.

For more information about the 2018 theme, please see resources on the HMD Trust website at www.hmd.org.uk.

A round up of previous HMD cherry tree planting activity by Shropshire Council is available on the council website at shropshire.gov.uk.