'World War One and Us' Community Exhibition Opens at Lisburn Museum

June 1, 2015

Alderman Paul Porter, Chairman of the Council’s Leisure and Community Development Committee hosted a reception in the Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum to open a community exhibition celebrating the completion of an engagement project with young people from Colin, Old Warren and Hillhall (Resurgam) and ladies from Tonagh.

The community exhibition ‘World War One and Us’ illustrates the wide range of activities undertaken by participants in this project focused on the Great War, 100 years ago.  The exhibition which is on display in the Museum until 19 June was enjoyed by a large group of people invited by those involved.  They heard Carl Curran, Jade Mullan, Samuel Hamilton and Sarahjane Patterson, representatives of the groups, describe in their own words what the project had meant to them.

Alderman Porter speaking at the event complimented all involved and said: “Visitors to the Museum will be delighted to see the fruits of this project and how it has enjoyably engaged those involved even with such a tragic subject as the First World War.”  He presented certificates to all those who participated.

The event was also attended by Chris Bailey, Director of the Northern Ireland Museums Council which had provided generous grant aid to the Museum to encourage the development of the community engagement project.

In conclusion the audience were treated to an extract from ‘Medal in the Drawer’ by Dr Brenda Winter Palmer, a play about local involvement in the Great War.  It is planned that it will be the subject of further community engagement work by the Museum in conjunction with Dr Winter Palmer, Queens University Belfast and Philip Crawford, Director of Creative Learning with the Lyric Theatre.