A “permanent memorial” for Suffolk women who served during the Second World War is at the centre of a £100,000 drive.
In 2019 Nicky Reynolds and Vicky Abbott launched a project with Suffolk Archives called Sharing Suffolk Stories.
The initiative focused on stories from the county which have not been told before.
Ms Reynolds said: “The project highlighted unknown stories and activities that have happened in Suffolk.
“We did the research and uncovered the stories of the women who served in the Women's Land Army in the Second World War in the county.
“Me and Vicky both have relatives who served in the Land Army in Suffolk, so we wanted to find out more about women who either lived in Suffolk or came here and served in the Second World War.”
The historian said that the project aimed to celebrate the things that women from Suffolk did, including their contribution to the region and the whole nation.
Sharing Suffolk Stories launched an exhibition that took a tour around Suffolk and included a wide range of activities and talks about women and the part they played in the region's history.
Ms Reynolds said: “We very quickly discovered that we needed and wanted to do more.
“We registered a charity called Suffolk Women's Land Army Memorial Trust to honour all of the women that we've uncovered.
“Our aim is to be available to anybody who would like to find out what the women of Suffolk did, as well as get to know their names.”
The founders of the charity launched online fundraising, which would help them set up a “permanent memorial” for the women they discovered.
Ms Reynolds added: “Our goal is to raise £100,000. We’ve spoken to a sculptor, a local artist, who's got some ideas about creating the memorial.
“Our aim is a fair bit of work, but we are getting there.”
The exhibition included original uniforms worn by the ‘land girls,’ photographs, paperwork, ephemera and 50 digital resources, including Holly Brega’s film Land Girls and the Horses of Suffolk.
“These ladies are rare gems, but they’re still around.
"They're in their 90s, but it’s a limited window of opportunity that we have, and we’re doing our very best to capture their stories while we still can,” Ms Reynolds added.
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