On June 22nd members and friends of the Skegness and District Burma Star Association and invited guests, gathered in the Rose Gardens on Tower Esplanade, Skegness to dedicate a memorial stone which had been placed there as a permanent tribute to all who fought in the Burma Campaign and in recognition of the work of the Skegness and District Burma Star Association.

The service was conducted by our Pastor, Rev'd Ian Banks, who is Padre to the Association. Sadly the Association's President, Mr Tom Brett, was unable to be at the service in person as he was still in hospital in Grimsby recovering from surgery. Prayers were said for Tom and the Padre also paid tribute to Mrs Olive Daws who recently died. After the stone was dedicated the members kept a two minute silence which was followed by the Kohimah Epitaph said by the Vice President of the Association, Mr Reg Bowers.

The service closed with the singing of Land of Hope and Glory which included a verse dedicated to the Burma Star Veterans:

        Men who were in Burma
        we are gathered today
        Standing, still together
        for our special day.
        Sending loyal greetings
        to our Gracious Queen.
        Once we were forgotten;
        now we can be seen.
        Once we were forgotten;
        now we can be seen.

Address given by Rev'd Ian Banks, Padre to the Skegness & District Branch of the Burma Star Association:

Jesus says, 'No one can show greater love than to lay down his life for his friends', and he didn't just say it; he did it.
The Apostle Paul writes. 'I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us, for through faith we are saved and we know that all things work together for good for those who love God'.
It is that hope of the glory to be revealed that has inspired millions of Christians throughout the ages to lay down their lives in suffering and death in defence of their countrymen and women.
We have come together to remember all those from the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force, both men and women, who offered their lives in the cause of peace and in the service of their King, their country, and the dignity of the human race in the Burma Campaign of the Second World War. Some died, some were injured, some have died since, some have survived. Here in Skegness we are a long way from the heat and humidity of the monsoon when everything becomes soggy and mouldy. We are a long way from the jungle sores and fevers, from the leeches and gunshot wounds, and from the terrifying killing fields of Burma and the Far East.
But for those who were there and who gather today to remember with gratitude those who served in any way in the intense and ferocious battles, indeed for all who fought in the Burma Campaign, neither time nor distance can erode the memories of the military successes or the comrades who fell, nor the valiant deeds that were then part of everyday life.
It is too easy to forget that those who gave their lives were by and large young men and women in the prime of youth with everything to live for.
It is too easy to forget that those who survived have had to live with the memories of that experience.
It is too easy to forget that the campaign left many widows.
The Burma Star Association, founded shortly after the war, has worked to ensure that we do not forget. Its main purpose is the welfare of those men and women who served in Burma and their widows and to provide facilities for an annual reunion.
It also organises and establishes branches of the Association in this country and overseas to help to maintain the comradeship experienced in the bitter fighting in the jungles of Burma, and which developed throughout the Burma command and still remains to this day.
Membership is open to anyone who is entitled to wear the Burma Star or Pacific Star with "Burma Clasp". Those who do not qualify as members can join the Association as "Friends" of the Burma Star Association.
We are gathered here today by courtesy of the Association. We are gathered around a memorial stone which has been placed here as a permanent tribute to all who fought in the Burma Campaign and in recognition of the work of the Burma Star Association in this area. From the early days Christians have set apart particular areas or monuments and dedicated them to the glory of God and to the memory of events or special people. This does not mean that we should presume that the provision of a special monument or sanctuary guarantees God's blessing and protection. That comes through faithful and obedient living.
It follows that all which we provide as a monument or memorial, whether inside or outside a building, is very special. Now that we have this stone as a memorial to all who served and in recognition of the Burma Star Association we want to dedicate it to the glory of God. God has promised each of us a place in a heavenly home for eternity; an eternity with those we have loved and lost; an eternity with God; an eternity of peace, a peace which continues to elude us in this transitory life.
The peace we are all pledged to seek will come and for every soldier seaman, and airman, whether men or women who dies in the pursuit of world peace, there awaits an eternity of peace.
As the years go by we continue to remember all who have made the ultimate sacrifice knowing that even for the "Forgotten Army" the memory of their sacrifice lives on in our hearts. Men who were in Burma we are gathered today, standing still together for our special day, for we know that for our tomorrow you gave your today. Amen