Friends of Hebburn Cemetery pay tribute to ‘Hebburn’s Angels’ with a new memorial bench
Parents who have lost children in South Tyneside now have a place to reflect in Hebburn Cemetery thanks to a new memorial bench.
Organised by the Friends of Heburn Cemetery group, the ‘Hebburn’s Angels’ bench is based just outside the baby and children area of the cemetery, on Victoria Road West.
The bench, which features angel wings and a robin, allows for mourning parents to have an area to reflect within the cemetery.
John Stewart, the chairman of the Friends of Hebburn Cemetery, told the Gazette where the idea to install the bench came from.
He said: “We thought it would be nice as we keep that area of the cemetery tidy for the parents so a nice bench gives them a place to reflect and offer a little bit of comfort, especially as we’ve sadly had three babies buried in the last six weeks.
“The response to it has been excellent, especially on the Hebburn Facebook pages - there has been something like 1,500 likes and comments and not one of them is a bad one.
“I’d like to say thanks to South Tyneside Council for giving us permission to install the bench and then thanks to Councillor Ellison and Councillor Smith who gave speeches as we unveiled the bench the other day.
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“It was a nice moving service.”