Letters to the Editor
Views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the editor or of the BDRA. Information is published in good faith but no liability can be accepted for loss or inconvenience arising from error or omission.
Dear Trevor
A Matter of Taste
I was very interested to see the above piece written in the
“Resident” Issue of February 2008, as I seem to be the person who wrote to
the Gazette on 27th November 2007 along the lines quoted.
It was reassuring to me after two and a half years of personally trying to
get something done on the subject of the deplorable condition of the World
War 2 Memorial and getting nowhere, that the “Resident” has referred to the
matter of the sad condition of Billericay’s Second World War Memorial.
I really cannot understand the attitude of people who argue that it should
be kept in its present dilapidated condition, as an example of the buildings
of the post war era. It is a War Memorial, for heaven’s sake and Memorials
all over the World were built to commemorate those who made such a huge
sacrifice for their Country and the Billericay Memorial should reflect the
sacrifice of local Heroes and show their memory some respect.
I do not go along with the thought that the Memorial should be located in a
spot which is amenable for contemplation. It should be where it is now – in
the centre of Billericay where relatives of the Fallen can feel justly proud
to see their family name inscribed and legible on a Memorial of quality
stone which will be a fitting tribute to their fathers and sons who paid
such a huge price for the freedom we all have.
The artist’s impression of an improved Second World War Memorial looks to be
a great improvement on the existing one, insomuch that it seems to show
Memorial tablets on a smaller wall than the awful patched up scruffy
original that now exists: and would it so much to replace what is unreadable
to those who gather to pay their respects on Remembrance Sunday and, for
some, all year round? What a lack of dignity it shows to all the young
Cadets who gather there on that special Sunday in November each year.
Yours sincerely
Mrs G.E.Jarvis.
Dear Mr Stansfield
Re “A Matter of Tate”. My concern is the neglect by the church for what
should be the focal point of the High Street.
Whilst accepting that at long last money has been spent on the interior of
the church, what about the exterior? Years of neglect and disinterest have
seen the windows deteriorate so that the frames now all appear rotten.
Replacement could have been delayed by rubbing down and repainting in the
years since Emmanuel opened. The double doors are in urgent need of
preservative and the side gate needs repainting. There are weeds all around
the base of the church. The surface of the triangle is all uneven and the
little posts and chain link which surrounded the area have never been
replaced. All in all what, as I say, should be the focal point of the town
is now a mess.
Yours Faithfully
Michael Turner