Covid memorial unveiled in Horsham during Day Of Reflection

The permanent stone memorial - in Hills Cemetery - was commissioned by Horsham funeral directors Freeman Brothers with a bespoke design created by J. Gumbrill Monumental Masons.

Bereavement coach Amanda Jones formally dedicated the memorial, crafted from Horsham stone, and said: “There is no date on the memorial to recognise for many the impact of Covid is still ongoing.”

The dedication followed a service at the Hills Cemetery Chapel during which key workers and town leaders were invited to reflect on the effects of the pandemic on Horsham during the past two years.

Freeman Brothers manager Abi Pattenden said: “The last two years have affected us all and our communities. There are some of us for whom things will never be the same again.”

She added that the memorial “marks not only the difficulties of the past few years, but also the fortitude with which they have been faced.”

Horsham District Council chairman David Skipp reflected on how Covid had ‘wreaked havoc here and throughout the world’ but added: “The pandemic has shown that we are resilient and that we can cope with what has been an extremely difficult time.”

He said now was a time of hope and looking to the future. “The memorial asks us to remember, but also looks forward to the challenges we have to meet.”

He paid tribute to the many key workers and volunteers who had shown kindness and compassion and had helped the community during the past two years.

Horsham Matters’ fundraising officer Paula Daly also praised the Horsham community who had come together to donate record amounts of food to Horsham’s Foodbank enabling the charity to deliver food to 11,000 people in need.

“We could not carry on to help people without the vital support of the community,” she said.

Freeman Brothers community coordinator Becky Hughes invited those attending to inscribe the name of a loved one, or add a picture, on wooden commemorative pebbles.

And she introduced a moving visual tribute of photos taken throughout the pandemic accompanied by music from the Foo Fighters’ Times Like These.

The service was livestreamed on YouTube.