That Monument - Why and How we did it
June 28th 2009 will be a date to remember. It was the date of the dedication of a new monument to the aviation history of Martlesham Heath.
Last year was the one-hundredth anniversary of the first British powered flight and the Royal Aeronautical Society were promoting the placement of bronze plaques in various parts of the country where significant aviation achievements had taken place.
Our committee considered a bronze plaque but came to the conclusion that not only did we have nowhere to prominently place a plaque, but also Martlesham Heath was the site of so much aviation research that a bronze plaque could not do justice to all that happened here.
I offered to give the matter some thought and designed the monument you see today. We took the idea to our great friend and supporter Mr Richard Barker, of Barker, Gotelee, solicitors, who not only maintains the existing memorials at his own expense, but was himself a prime mover in the erection of the 1991 war memorial.
Richard was delighted with the concept of erecting a monument to remember for posterity the aviation history of The Heath. He offered to “front” our campaign by way of contacting businesses on The Heath to ask for donations. This no doubt added “weight” to the campaign and quite miraculously within a few months we had achieved our goal of raising the necessary £9000.
We are deeply grateful to all who donated. These included many smaller amounts generously donated by individuals, and several larger companies, including Graingers Residential, British Telecom and Industrious Ltd. We also obtained a grant from Martlesham Parish Council and Richard not only gave a generous donation but also saw to it that the inscription on the 1991 memorial was repainted in gold. Another large private donation was given by a local man, from a trust fund, who wishes to remain anonymous.
So almost to the year of the birth of an idea we now have a monument to our proud aviation past that future generations will be able to read and ponder over.
We all heave a sigh of relief now that the dedication ceremony for the new monument on the Barrack Square is over. The Spitfire and Hurricane, as always, provided that moving feeling of nostalgia and pride in all of us - we are grateful that they came to salute us.
A great turn out, showing that folks are still interested in aviation history - and we in MHAS continue to promote aviation history on The Heath.
Martlesham Heath Aviation Society is as strong today as it is ever was and the magnificent new monument is an achievement of which we can be proud.