If you have joined St John’s since the start of Covid you are probably unaware of the magnificent war memorial and exhibition in the church tower.
This video gives you a glimpse - the exhibition on two floors includes five specially-made videos about men from Meads who are named on the war memorial.
A group of volunteers researched the information on each of the 69 men. Eight of the men lived in The Village and some of their relatives were interviewed for the films. An interactive display shows where each man lived and gives information about where they served and died.
The church tower is the only part of the original church building which remains; the church was bombed in 1944. The church warden at the time narrowly escaped death and the exhibition includes an interview with his daughter as well as photos of the original building and the bomb damage.
Before Covid, volunteers in teams of two opened the exhibition on Saturday afternoons from 2-4pm Publicity leaflets distributed to local hotels ensured that there were up to a dozen visitors each week.
The exhibition will be open every Saturday until 9th November 2024
If you are interested in volunteering to help open the exhibition one afternoon every month contact me - cathbutcher@live.co.uk