Residents at Bernash came together to recall their own memories of Victory in Europe (VE) Day, which marked the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany’s unconditional surrender.
The 8th May is a date that remains in the minds of many who lived through the war and residents were keen to share their own experiences of what was the world’s most devastating war to date.
Staff held a variety of VE Day celebrations, including music and a quiz, with residents sharing memories and singing along to songs together. The home was decorated in flags and bunting to create the ‘street party’ feel – with residents reminiscing with the team about where they were the day that Winston Churchill declared the war officially over.
Shelley Turnbull, Home Manager at Bernash: “Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the VE day celebrations at the home, it was really lovely to hear residents sharing their war-time memories.”
To add to the many activities on VE Day, we were kindly lent an actual US Army truck used in World War II and restored by local collector Robert Thomas. The residents thoroughly enjoyed this special moment, which evoked many memories for them.
The home’s activities leader Carol Edwards said: “VE Day is one of the most important days in our country’s history and many of our residents have very vivid memories of the jubilant street parties that were held to celebrate the end of the war. As many of our team here are ladies, we thought what better way to mark the occasion than dressing as land girls, the women who played a huge role in the war by providing agricultural support, keeping the country ticking over while the men were away in combat.”
Ryan Somauroo, Director at Bernash, said, ‘Many people have likened the current pandemic to certain war experiences and we often look to the older and wiser generation to learn from them and their experiences. We wanted to ensure our residents were able to celebrate, show their respects and pay tribute during this monumental event’.
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