RETURN TO GLATTON
May 26 – 30, 2012
Peterborough, England at the Bull Hotel
AGENDA
Saturday, May 26th
Registration at Hotel
Sunday, May 27th
Day in Conington
Airfield Visit
Conington Church Memorial Services
Lunch
Monument Memorial Service
Aftrenoon Tea
Monday, May 28th
Memorial Service at Madingley American Cemetery
Afternoon to be announced
Tuesday, May 29th
Closing Banquet
Wednesday, May 30th
Departure
SPECIAL REPORT
(from the Fireball newsletter, August 2012)
Thirty friends and family members joined five veterans of the 457th Bomb Group, two friends from Switzerland, English historians, and a host of English friends for the 16th “Return to Glatton” mini-reunion. The events took place from May 26 – May 30, 2012 and, although attendance was smaller then other mini reunions, all went according to schedule. This, in part, was due to warm, sunny days with no rain. Few days in 1944 and 1945 compared to the fine weather of these four days.
From the moment the group was led up the driveway of the Conington Church to the bag piper’s strains of Amazing Grace, until the last picture was taken at the conclusion of the Farewell Banquet, it was agreed that the meeting was one of the best. A memorial service was held in Conington Church, during which the service Canon Saint John Wayne, Vicar of the church in 1944-45, was remembered as the unofficial chaplain of the 457th and as a constant source of spiritual help. Wreaths with the Triangle U were laid at the Stone Airman and the Glatton Memorial, both glistening in the springtime sun. Attendees at the American Cemetery in Madingly saw the laying of the wreath at The Wall of the Missing and a flyover by the Sally B. A new feature of the reunion was a visit to the Rochester Bridge Trust, the new owner of the Rose Court Farm.
Friends and Family gather with the men of the 457th during a Memorial Day celebration at Madingly American Cemetery. A warm greeting and an elegant luncheon awaited those who made the visit. The Trust is headquartered in a 15th century structure with spotless hardwood floors, high exposed wood beam ceilings, and furniture of the era. The building and furnishings are mindful of the workmanship of centuries past. Our visit included a walking tour of a delightful city market street, Rochester Castle, and Cathedral. David Bass arranged a trip to the city of York for some of the group who did not attend the Rochester tour.
It was a perfect day for a tour bus adventure or a walk on the wall, which still surrounds part of the city.
The three-day reunion at the Bull Hotel concluded with a farewell banquet. A framed composite of patches from the 457th Squadrons and buttons of past mini-reunions was presented to the Trust on behalf of the 457th Bomb Group Association. The future of the mini reunion is secure. All attendees left with the satisfaction of having attended and the express desire to Return to Glatton in 2014.
James L. Bass
