A ceremony has taken place in Highbridge to mark Holocaust Memorial Day and 80 years since the liberation of the largest Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Dozens of locals attended the special ceremony, organised by Churches Together in Burnham and Highbridge, which was held besides Highbridge’s Frank Foley Statue in Market Street on Monday (January 27th).
The service of remembrance was conducted by Rev Martin Little, vicar of St John’s Church in Highbridge, with local school pupils and residents in attendance.
Prayers and readings in memory of Holocaust victims were read by pupils from Burnham’s St Andrew’s School and Highbridge’s Churchfield School. Floral tributes were also laid at the statue.
Highbridge-born Frank Foley was employed as a Passport Control Officer in Berlin from 1920 until 1939. In his role, he was able to help thousands of Jews escape from Nazi Germany before the outbreak of World War Two.
“It was a Christian act of worship, but was very much intended to be accessible to all as an act of memorial, reflection, and commitment to peace,” Rev Little told Burnham-On-Sea.com.
The Frank Foley statue in Highbridge was unveiled in 2005. In summer 2022, the Frank Foley statue was given a professional wash and clean.
We previously reported that a statue for Highbridge war hero Frank Foley had also been unveiled by the Foreign Secretary.
