First Field of Remembrance in Scotland

Ian Murray with a volunteer planting the crosses in the Field of Remembrance

Hibernian FC captain Ian Murray took a break from training  and joined volunteers to help with the planting of thousands of crosses in Scotland’s first ever Field of Remembrance, which opened this week, as part of events to mark the 90^th anniversary of the Scottish Poppy Appeal.

Following a large fundraising appeal mailing to homes across Scotland, Poppyscotland, the charity behind the Appeal, brought in volunteers to help with the planting of 11,000 remembrance crosses in the Field of Remembrance in Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh, which will be situated next to the traditional Garden of Remembrance.

Volunteers helped plant 11,000 remembrance crosses

Speaking of his support Hibernian captain Ian Murray said: 

“It is an honour to be able to represent Hibernian Football Club at the Field of Remembrance. Remembrance Sunday is a day that everyone should respect and it is an opportunity to pay tribute to everyone who has given their lives for this country. I will be wearing my poppy with pride again this year and I would encourage any Hibernian supporter to follow suit because it is such a worthy cause.”

Colin Flinn from Poppyscotland added:  

“We are very grateful to Hibernian FC for their support. It’s been a big undertaking to ensure that the thousands of crosses are included in the display so that members of the public can view the personal and heartfelt messages dedicated to individuals. All our volunteers have worked tremendously hard over the past few days and I give them my deepest thanks. We wanted to do something special to mark the 90^th anniversary of the Scottish Poppy Appeal and we have been overwhelmed by the response from our supporters in building a unique display of collective remembrance.”

The Field of Remembrance will be open till Sunday 13^th November for public to view. It will be situated adjacent to the traditional Garden of Remembrance on the other side of the Scott Monument. Visiting members of the public who wish to plant crosses can obtain them from the on-site kiosk.