THE lives and stories of the men of Parkend killed in the First World War – and the people they left behind – was told in flowers.

The festival at Parkend Church invited visitors to ‘meet the people’ of Parkend in 1917.

Each display was accompanied by a figure of a villager, including soldiers, nurses, a widow, a miner, a bandsman, a cricketer, the villager and the doctor.

The 26 figures were made by Dorothy and Arnold Basson who have spent the two years since the church’s last festival, researching the stories of the villagers and making the models.

Mrs Basson said: “I got the list of the men on the war memorial and they became people and I started to find out who they were and what they did before

“I’ve done one figure for every name on the war memorial – but they are the ones we know about that we remember every year.

“We asked: ‘what about the ones who were injured physically or mentally?’

“Then I looked at the parish registers and many of them who married at the time were in the services so there is a bride were groom and he has his arm in a sling.

“I’ve done a bandsman, there’s a cricketer, the vicar, the miner and the ones who were widowed, left with children and virtually left to get on with life because there was no social security.”

Among the most poignant story for Mr and Mrs Basson – whose family run the cycle centre in Parkend – was that of Harry Robins of the Cycle Corps who was killed in Iraq in April 1916.

The figure is sat in an English country garden that perhaps he would have dreamt about and he carries a map of Basra where Private Robins served.

Mrs Basson said: “We have very talented flower arrangers who have come up with superb designs.

“That’s not my side of it but it really has taken over our lives for the last two years.

“It’s been a privilege to learn so much about these people and their lives.

They are now people to me, they are all individuals now.

“They had really tough lives but they were resilient, they stuck together and they helped each other. That is how they got by.”

Proceeds from the festival will go towards the maintenance of the church.

•See this week’s Review for more photographs.