Margate Sea Cadets were able to pay tribute to seafarers in the Merchant Navy after Linden Homes donated a flagpole to the group.
The group, which is based at Hartsdown Park in Margate, had to take down its old wooden flagpole and didn’t have the money to replace it before Merchant Navy Day on Sunday 3 September.
However, after seeing the flags outside Linden Homes’ Westwood Point location off Nash Road, the group reached out for help – and the housebuilder donated a flagpole so the Red Ensign could be raised at the remembrance service.
Merchant Navy Day is held each year on 3 September, which is the anniversary of the declaration of war in 1939 and the loss of the SS Athenia, the first UK ship to be sunk by German forces during the Second World War, on the same day.
Keith Taylor, First Lieutenant of Margate Sea Cadets, said: “Raising awareness of the Merchant Navy Remembrance Day helps to teach the young cadets the importance of this day, which they will then pass down to younger generations. This keeps the memory of those who we have lost alive.
“Our old flagpole was made of wood and was going rotten, so we had to take it down. To order a new one would have been a lot of money and would have taken too long to arrive.
“Chris, the sales advisor at Westwood Point, was very helpful when I went into the sales office to see if Linden Homes could help us out, and helped to organise the donation of the flagpole to ensure that we had it in time for the service.”
This is the second year that Margate Sea Cadets has hosted a Merchant Navy Day remembrance service. This year’s event was attended by the Deputy Mayor of Margate Cllr John Edwards and former sailor Brian Cole.
Candice McCabe, marketing manager for Linden Homes, said: “We were pleased to help Margate Sea Cadets mark Merchant Navy Day and remember the sacrifice of hard-working Merchant Navy seafarers.
“Margate Sea Cadets does a huge amount to help young people in the town and, as a housebuilder providing new homes locally, one of our key priorities is supporting the local community.
“We hope the flagpole we’ve donated from Westwood Point will be used by the group for many years to come.”
Construction at Westwood Point is currently in its third phase. The development includes a range of two, three and four-bedroom houses, with homes available to purchase privately or under the Home Stepper shared ownership scheme.
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