Window of opportunity

SARK'S ex-servicemen and women have launched an appeal to restore the First World War Memorial Window in St Peter's Church.

Although the appeal for the £5,000 to £6,000 needed for restoration work cannot be made through the Sark branch of the Royal British Legion – because its rules stipulate that all funds raised must be used to support current or former members of the armed forces and their families – the island's RBL members have undertaken to raise the funds.

The memorial window is on the north side of the church and is one of six that need work.

The three on the south side have all been restored and, in the eyes of this very unqualified observer at least, the transformation is quite extraordinary.

In a letter to Sark residents, Reg Guille explained that the refurbishment of the other five windows was being funded by generous sponsors and he added that the church had approached the legion's Sark branch to raise the money for the memorial window's restoration.

Although the legion's rules precluded such an act, the branch's membership supported the request and decided to act as former servicemen and women – rather than legion members – to raise the cash.

In his letter to residents, Lt-Col Guille recalled that the funding for the original window was raised in the 1920s – it is believed by public subscription – as was the finance for the War Memorial in front of St Peter's.

'The ex-service members in the branch believe that the public would wish once again to help raise funds to refurbish the memorial window,' he said in the letter.

'Many Sark families have connections to most of those men commemorated in that beautiful stained-glass window and we ask that the community of Sark come together to honour those men again by ensuring that the window will last another 90 years.'

St Peter's is not only a beautiful little church – and that beauty is being considerably enhanced by the restoration of much of its stained glass – but it also contains much of the history and quirkiness (the prisoner's pew is an example of the latter) of Sark.

Additionally, the memorial window serves as a perpetual reminder – as does the war memorial outside – of the quite extraordinary sacrifice made by so many of the young men of this small community and for that reason alone, this appeal is worth supporting.

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Following on from my story last week about Sammy the rescue dog going AWol, I received a somewhat testy email from someone accusing me of 'making light' of a couple of carriage drivers involved in the search.

The reason I didn't identify the carriage drivers – and for the record, I don't make light of anything when writing on serious subjects – was because I didn't know who they were and had no time before my deadline to find out.

I've now been told that they were Elaine King and Elizabeth Duke and they were referred to as carriage drivers simply because that's the only information I had and not, as was suggested in that email, because they are somehow 'lesser people'. People are people and perhaps this is yet another example of the obsession Sark seems to have with the unimportant 'who' rather than the more important 'what'.

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By the time this is published, Sark's Christmas lights will have been switched on from the green next to Avenue Cycles, where there will also be a nativity scene on display.

Tonight and tomorrow there are performances of Le Panteau – The Three Musketeers – which promises the annual few hours of music, merriment and topical jokes, all added to an amazing amount of talent.

* The email address for comment is fallesark@sark.net.