There was barely a dry eye in the house at a special Wolves Foundation event to mark VE Day, as participants from Molineux Memories and Wolves Elders were treated to a wartime special of both songs and artefacts from the Second World War.
Beth Belle, who forms part of the vocal trio ‘The Bluebird Belles’ which perform nationwide, was the special guest, delivering a string of swing and wartime tunes, which had both groups not only joining in to sing along, but getting up to have a dance.
Beth wasn’t the only special guest, with Wolves legends John Richards and Steve Daley also in attendance, along with staff and volunteers from RAF Museum Midlands at Cosford, who brought along an array of items to bring back memories for the assembled gathering.
These included uniforms, gasmasks, cutouts of military personnel and helmets, and provoked plenty of discussion, and was the second of two afternoons in which staff from the Museum headed to Molineux to support the Foundation.
“We were invited along to the Molineux Memories and Wolves Elders Group sessions to commemorate VE Day and thought this would be a wonderful session, and it was, we all had a fantastic day!” said Paula Kovacs, Community Engagement Manager at the RAF Museum Midlands.
“We brought some of our handling collection of original objects including silk maps, buttons, medals and a child’s gas mask as well as cutouts of people that were in the RAF during World War 2 and our volunteers were able to share these with the participants. The objects prompted lots of conversation with lots of reminiscence and stories of childhood which were wonderful to hear.
“We had a great time and it was wonderful to share everything with the groups and staff at Molineux.”
Jasmin Patel, Senior Health Officer with the Foundation, added: “The special events we hold for participants of Molineux Memories and Wolves Elders are always that little bit special, and this was certainly no exception.
“It turned into a really memorable afternoon and was great to see so many people singing and dancing, and sharing so many of their memories and experiences.
“A huge thank you to Beth Belle, and to the staff and volunteers from RAF Museum Midlands, who helped create a fantastic atmosphere where everyone was able to fully commemorate such an important anniversary.
“And also to Wolves’ head chef Luke Hitchins and his team for providing a delicious selection of cakes for guests to enjoy.”
RAF Cosford, situated next door to RAF Museum Midlands, will again host the hugely successful Air Show this year, on Sunday June 8th. Tickets are now available via cosfordairshow.co.uk.
