A POIGNANT service was held at Stalybridge War Memorial on August 15 to mark the 75th anniversary of Victory over Japan (VJ) Day.
The socially distanced event was organised by the Royal British Legion and Friends of Stalybridge War Memorial and saw a small number of people gather to pay their respects.
A trumpeter from Stalybridge Old Band played the Last Post and wreaths were laid by special guests, including Jonathan Reynolds, MP for Stalybridge and Hyde, which also takes in Mossley.
He said: “It was wonderful to be part of the VJ Day service, and to lay a wreath on behalf of my constituents, especially given many were not able to attend themselves given the Covid-19 restrictions.
“It was a privilege to chat to local veterans, and the families of those lost in Japan. It is a particularly cruel turn of fate that in the months after VE Day, lives were still being lost in the Far East – they deserve our thanks and our remembrance.
“Seventy five years ago, Prime Minister Clement Atlee declared ‘Peace has once again come to the world’. May we never take it for granted.”
VJ Day is when Imperial Japan surrendered in World War 2, bringing the conflict to an end.