£50,000 sought to build military statue – including Regimental Goat – in Wrexham memorial garden
Rory Sheehan, local democracy reporter
Work is progressing on a statue to commemorate the Royal Welch Fusiliers at the former Hightown Barracks in Wrexham – but £50,000 is still needed to complete the project.
A lifesize bronze of a Royal Welsh Fusilier and Regimental Goat is to be installed as part of a memorial garden at the entrance to the barracks on Kingsmills Road, with hopes for a formal unveiling on St David’s Day next year.
The project is the brainchild of Hermitage Councillor Graham Rogers, who approached Offa Community Council with the idea back in 2017.
Since then a bus shelter has since been moved further along the road, and a lamppost placed outside the site by Wrexham Council as part of the preparations for the work which has finally got underway this month.
While the project has the backing of the community council which has driven the fundraising, costs have since risen from £95,000 to just more than £120,000 over the last few years.
A total of £70,000 has been raised so far enabling a start to be made, and although there is a shortfall of £50,000, Cllr Rogers is determined the money can, and will, be raised for its completion through further funding bids and fundraising contributions.
He said: “The statue will stand at one of the main gateways into Wrexham and will be there for generations to come.
“The barracks in Hightown has a strong association with the borough of Wrexham dating back to the 1750’s.
“I am pleased Offa Community Council members are in support along with the members of the Wrexham Comrades Branch. It was agreed a Royal Welch Fusilier and regimental goat would be a fitting tribute.”
‘Display’
The sculptor commissioned to work on the project is Llandudno-based Nick Elphick, whose work has featured on the Discovery Channel, with Dave Cottle Civil Engineering working on the site.
Light installation is being provided by Wrexham-based Stewart Rawson Electrical, which will enable the sculpture to be lit up at night.
Cllr Rogers added: “There will be a display unit installed in the memorial garden. Contained within the display unit will be the history of the association between the Royal Welch and Wrexham borough, and all parties who have kindly contributed towards the project will have their company names displayed within it.”
Any Wrexham companies, businesses or members of the public who wish to contribute donations to complete the project can contact the clerk of Offa Community Council, Karen Benfield on 01978 291562 or by email: [email protected].
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…but why tho?
Total waste of money
They should not bother as it will get torn down by people who can’t respect the fact that ordinary men and boys were soldiers for all sorts of reasons, noble and not so. I don’t like much of what the Brit Army represents today but it has done some good service in the past. There again maybe I’m not as pure and orthodox as other commenters on here.
The Fuzzies were always an odd bunch of dubious morals but not even they marched like that.
Nope! I don’t contribute to the cult of the solider. Yes, soldiers are recruited form the community (most notably poorer communities) but such things commemorate the “nobility” of the institution and of “dying for one’s country”. They do not commemorate young lives cut short because of the failures or ideological or thieving aspirations of governments. (The most common reasons for war) I am not a pacifist, but would not fight or die for anything so trite and toxic as “patriotism” and I won’t celebrate the mechanisms which industrialise the slaughter of our, or “the enemy’s” young. CASE IN POINT: Remember… Read more »
Well, that just about covers it.
Yeah sorry. I’ll get down off me soapbox. I stand by every word of it, but a bit of a rant for a Friday afternoon.
No need to apologise, they’re all valid points, I’m sure the council could find things of much better value to the locals to spend their money on, why people feel the need to glorify war is beyond me.