The official launch of the poppy season was held on October 31st at Government House by members of the British Legion-Bahamas Branch (BLBB) and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.
The Governor General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, His Excellency, The Most Honorable Cornelius A. Smith was the recipient of the first official poppy from a member of the Boys Brigade. Also in attendance were Captain Philip Clarke, Principle Officer, Strategy, Policy and Planning in the office of the Commander Defence Force and Captin Fernley Palmer, Captain of the 14th Bahamas Boys Brigade Company.
The British Legion-Bahamas Branch, along with all of its Commonwealth colleagues, will observe the ending of world war II, which took place in June of 1944. The BLBB will also pay homage to Bahamian pilots who flew over normandy during the war.
Chaired by RBDF Representative, Woman Marine Reservist Adina Munroe-Charlow, Chairman and Treasurer of the BLBB, proceeds from the poppy sales benefit the registered World War II Veterans or their widows with their monthly grants.
It was a tradition that came about after 1914 during the onslaught of World War One (WWI) in the heart of Europe. Poppies were reported to be one of the first flowers to emerge from the freshly-dug graves of dead soldiers in Northern France and Flanders Fields.
The poppy represents the immeasurable sacrifice made by the fallen and has become a lasting memorial symbol to those who died in that World War and later conflicts. Poppies are worn on the left of one’s attire, close to the heart.
