North Wiltshire Crematorium will Light up the Night in Remembrance
North Wiltshire Crematorium will be lighting up a November night with candles to help people remember loved ones and support charity at the same time.
The crematorium has joined up with Cruse Bereavement Support to host a Light up the Night evening on Saturday 12 November between 4pm and 6pm.
The event is free to attend but donations will be welcome for Cruse, the UK’s leading bereavement charity.
The event will mark the end of a day of special activities at the crematorium, starting from 10.30am, as it is opening up its Chapel to enable people to pay their respects for Remembrance Day.
From 10.45am, a short Remembrance Day Service will take place at the crematorium’s Chapel, which will include a two-minute silence being observed at 11am. The service will finish at 11.15am.
During the day, people will be able to buy poppies in support of the Royal British Legion and will have the opportunity to light a candle also, in support of the Royal British Legion who enable valuable ongoing support of veterans, serving and injured servicemen, women and their families. Refreshments will be available between 11.30am and 12 noon.
Between 12 noon and 2pm, visitors will be able to take a conducted tour of the North Wiltshire Crematorium site including the Chapel, Crematory and our Garden of Remembrance.
North Wiltshire Crematorium is part of Westerleigh Group, the UK’s largest independent owner and operator of crematoria and cemeteries, with 37 sites in England, Scotland and Wales, all set within beautifully-landscaped gardens of remembrance which provide pleasant, peaceful places for people to visit and reflect.
Site Manager Katie Capel said: “Light up the Night has been created to give friends and family an opportunity for shared remembrance of lost loved ones in a place of unique calm, peace, hope and community.
“The candles will be LED ones, so they are re-usable, which we know is important to people these days and helps reinforce Westerleigh Group’s commitment to being as sustainable and environmentally-friendly as possible.
“We look forward to showing visitors our beautiful grounds out of season, while supporting a very relevant charity.
“It seemed fitting to combine the Light up the Night event with Remembrance Day.
“Remembrance is what we do at Westerleigh Group, so there is no better place for people to come and pay their own respects and personal tributes to honour the bravery of the fallen and to remember loved ones.
“Our peaceful and tranquil site is the perfect place for people to visit and complete their own act of remembrance. All are welcome.
“We wanted to do this as part of our continuing efforts to play a positive role in local community life and to engage with the people who live in the area surrounding our beautiful site.”
The first Light up the Night event took place in Bristol in 2019 and saw a graveyard illuminated by thousands of candles in memory of lost loved ones, creating a rare sense of community, respect and reflection.
Katie added: “The Light up the Night event should be a truly moving experience, open for anybody to drop by and walk, linger, light up an LED candle and remember family and friends, past and present.”
Cruse aims to ensure everyone who is grieving gets the support they need, when they need it.
The organisation has an army of around 4,000 volunteers, and its helpline answers 33,000 calls every year. In 2021, 27,000 people received individual support at one of the most painful and difficult periods of their lives.
Katie said: “Cruse helps grieving families through bereavement support, information and campaigning to try to ensure they are supported, respected and understood and we are proud to be able to support their work with an event which will be truly memorable.”
To find out more about the event, visit: www.cruse.org.uk/lightupthenight
