A POSTMISTRESS has visited France with her husband to pay their respects for the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
Leslie and Tim Francis made the journey to Normandy to watch the proceedings held on Thursday, June 6, as well as visit the beaches where the invasion took place.
Leslie said it was important for them to 'acknowledge the sacrifices' soldiers made as Enham Alamein served as a place for military personnel to be rehabilitated after the First and Second World Wars.
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Leslie and Tim Francis on June 6 at the Dol de Bretagne memorial (Image: Leslie Francis)
The village of Enham, as it was previously named, was chosen as a centre for the rehabilitation of injured and war-disabled soldiers returning from the frontline in the First World War.
Enham was funded by King George V in 1919, becoming a hub for the care of soldiers as they were retrained in basketry, upholstery, gardening services and more.
In the Second World War, many service personnel from the Battle of El Alamein in Egypt were brought to the recovery centre in the village.
Alamein was then added to the village's name in 1945 in gratitude for Enham's care of service personnel.
Leslie said: "We've been in Enham Alamein for about 20 years, and it was born out of the rehabilitation of the First World War soldiers."
Tim, who previously served in the Armed Forces in Northern Ireland, has been to France on a couple of occasions to pay his respects.
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Statue of a British soldier outside Enham Alamein post office (Image: Leslie Francis)
"This time last year we booked to go over for the 80th D-Day celebrations, and though we weren't at the memorial on the day, we paid our respects and watched the proceedings on French TV," Leslie added.
D-Day, also known as the Normandy Landings, was a historic operation that saw the Allied Forces mount a large-scale invasion of Nazi-occupied France that ultimately tipped the course of the Second World War in the Allies' favour.
Leslie said Tim wore his grandfather's medals, and she wore her British Empire medal which she was awarded in 2022 for providing services to her community.
She added: "It was incredible to pay our respects to veterans, and pay thanks to acknowledge their sacrifices.
"They will never be forgotten."
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