Alderney's 79th Homecoming Celebration

This full report and accompanying photos come from David Nash in Alderney. 

AFTER almost 80 years since the first boats arrived at Braye Harbour carrying groups of Channel Island refugees who had fled Alderney with just one small brown suitcase apiece , before the Nazi occupation force arrived, there are only a handful of those tough survivors left . However , President William Tate kept emphasising that the memory of those tragic days must never be forgotten and, when the wreaths were laid  at the famous brass plaque on the Courthouse wall, watched by a small group of pupils from St Anne's Primary school he   charged then  to keep the spirit of Homecoming alive when the older generations are gone. Young musicians also took part  when the Island band entertained the guests at the Island Hall later under the baton of Neil Burton.

This year the Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey , Lieutenant General  Richard Cripwell played a key role in the ceremony, reading a lesson in the Parish Church during the ecumenical service and then speaking with heartfelt passion as a former soldier at the Vin D' Honneur in the Island Hall. He stated " Seventy nine years ago today, eighty people returned to this island after five years away and the scale of the challenge they faced was immense. Every part of their lives had been dismantled , but with a breadth and depth of character that should be no surprise to anyone who knows this island , they rolled up their sleeves and just got on with it."  He continued "Homecoming isn't just about an event but an ideal; it isn't just about coming home as well.  It is vital to look back , honour those  who gave so much of themselves  to make this island  come to real life again  and remember where we came from ".