War veteran, Chester Armstrong, a resident of Curphey Home. - Peter Kavanaugh photo

MANDEVILLE, Manchester:

It is said that 'old soldiers never die, they only fade from sight' and following a visit to the 50-year-old Curphey Home in south Manchester recently, you might have to wonder if this saying is true, as you walk by the white gravestones under which many ex-servicemen have finally found everlasting solace far from the battlefields of Europe.

For those who do not remember, many of our Jamaican brothers answered the call of the motherland Britain, and enlisted and fought in the First (1914-1918) and Second (1939-1945) World Wars.

The enemy on both occasions was a highly industrialised and imperialist German state under Kaiser for World War I and then 20 years later, it was the 'tyrannical madman of Europe' Adolf Hitler whose sights were set on total world domination.

Long and bitter

All the stories indicate that the war years were long and bitter, and at the end of the day, it is estimated that more than 50 million civilians lost their lives as a result of the "titanic struggle" to safeguard western democracy.

Quite a number of Jamaican servicemen never made it back home, but for those who survived and were in need of a resting place to live out their twilight years in dignity, Curphey Home, founded in 1958 in the quiet hills of Manchester, was the place to be.

In the early years, the home (situated on 54 acres) was occupied by a mixture of persons who had seen action in both wars, but by the year 2004 there were only a few veterans of the World War.

Curphey Home derives its name from the late Sir Aldinton Curphey and falls under the purview of the Jamaican Legion, a body that was established in 1949, some three years after the end of the Second World War.

Some of the services provided at the home on a daily basis include the feeding, clothing and nursing of all indigent ex-servicemen. There is, of course, a resident superintendent and nurse.

The impact of three hurricanes in less than four years has caused much damage to the facility and currently there is still quite bit of refurbishing work to be done at the home in order to make the lives of its residents more comfortable.

'Ex-serviceman'

The Jamaican Legion is affiliated to the British Commonwealth ex-service League and part of its function is to ensure that no 'ex-serviceman' or 'ex-servicewoman' or their dependent suffer hardship or live in want, and so on an annual basis in Jamaica it stages several fund raising activities such as a "concert in the gardens" what is known as Poppy Day sales.

Last year, the target set by the Legion of $4 million was surpassed this year the target is $4.3 million.

So, the next time you see the 'poppy tins' being passed around, do not hesitate to do your part by making a donation, and if possible, bow your head in silence as you remember Flanders Field in Belgium; remember the many who made the ultimate sacrifice; remember the more than 50 million civilians who died as a result of the wars ... remember Curphey home.

If you want to help veterans call the Jamaica Legion, the group in charge of Curphey Home at 926-2381.

- Peter Kavanaugh