It was a small, intimate gathering but for the proud relatives of local hero Anton Frampton, who died on active service in Afghanistan five years ago, it brought the notion of sacrifice to the attention of a new generation.
Anton was 20 when he was killed with five comrades in a bomb blast in 2012. Serving with the 3rd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment, he had joined the army at 17.
This year marked the sixth occasion that members of his family gathered with pupils of Royds Hall Community School to remember Anton, from Longwood, by laying a wreath on his memorial bench.
Anton’s mum Margaret and sister Gemma were joined by children aged between four and 16. Another pupil “played his heart out” to deliver the Last Post, which Margaret described as “a wonderful tribute.”
She added: “I think it is important for the younger generation to understand that Remembrance Day is not just history about World War I and World War II but conflicts much nearer to their age, and in this case in their neighbourhood. And that each of the sacrifices made by these soldiers was for their freedom.
“Although the little ones will not fully understand, they know that they are involved in something very important. And through the years they will fully understand why we have the remembrance service and then in time pass it on to the next generation.”
