HAMILTON – More than 5,000 hand-knitted and crocheted poppies cascaded over the fences, railings, gardens and limestone walls of St. John’s Anglican Church in Ancaster in early November. The installation, a tribute to Remembrance Day, was led by church congregant Babs Dawson, who had long dreamed of establishing the annual tradition.
Inspired by the 2014 Tower of London art installation by artist Paul Cummins, which displayed 888,000 ceramic poppies to honour each Commonwealth soldier who died in the First World War, Ms. Dawson began her project in January 2023. She called on fellow congregants who knit and crochet, and was delighted when 12 to 15 participants turned up to the first Wednesday meeting.
Together, the group set to work crafting poppies, which were later attached to deer netting to create a flowing effect over the church grounds. This display marks the second year of the installation at St. John’s, growing from 3,000 poppies in 2023 to over 5,000 in 2024, thanks in part to contributions from friends and family as far away as the U.K.
Similar displays were also featured at St. John’s churches in Niagara Falls and Elora. Each display received approval from the Royal Canadian Legion in Ottawa.
The Hamilton Spectator
I experienced a ‘warming of the heart’