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May
8, 2005
Statue
honouring Highbridge war hero Frank Foley unveiled
ABOVE: Frank Foley's nephew Bill Kelley (left) flew over from
Illinois in the USA for the occasion. Here he is talking about
the statue to Stone Carver Jonathan Sells who was commisioned
to carve the statue.
A
statue honouring Frank Foley, the Highbridge war hero who saved
the lives of thousands of Jews, was unveiled on Sunday May 8th.
 The
Highbridge-born hero (pictured right) helped Jews escape from
Germany before the start of World War II by giving them visas
to flee the country.
In
order to mark the 47th anniversary of his death, the occasion
was marked with many events, including the unveiling of an eight-foot
tall statue outside Highbridge Community Hall in Market Street.
The
unveiling came after members of the Frank Foley Fair Committee
raised £25,000 over five years to fund the construction
of the statue.
The
statue was carved out of from Portland stone by Jonathan Sells
and shows Mr Foley signing a visa for a Jewish man, with local
buildings such as Highbridge's clock, the bridge and the old town
hall alongside him. Click
here to see a large image of the Frank Foley statue.
Two
days of events to honour Mr Foley were held during the weekend,
including on Saturday May 7th a special 'Frank Foley Dance' where
guests were able to join The Highbridge War Memorial Trust at
their annual fund raising event in The Community Centre, Market
Street.
On
Sunday, the Frank Foley Day Celebrations began with an Ecumenical
Service at St. John the Evangelist Church honouring the life and
work of Major Foley. This was followed by a fete in Southwell
Gardens and the unveiling of the Statue at 3.00pm on the Town
Green.
In
2004, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw praised Frank Foley's heroism
during a seperate commemorative event in Berlin.
He
said: "Frank Foley risked his life to save the lives of thousands
of German Jews. Without the protection of diplomatic immunity
he visited internment camps and sheltered Jewish refugees in his
house. Frank Foley was a true British hero."
The
banquet before the unveiling of the Frank Foley statue, held in
Highbridge Community Hall for around 140 guests. (Photos: Mike
Lang)
RELATED
LINKS:
Large image
of the Frank Foley statue
Official
documents relating to the work of Frank Foley
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