War memorials honouring those who served in the First World War have been rescued and restored by a community group which has turned to £2.50 permanent markers to give them a new lease of life after being told they'd have to fork out thousands to get the job done by professionals. The Action Shack, a men's shed group which meets once a week within the grounds of St John’s Day Centre in Manselton, Swansea, used their base to house two old marble First World War memorials after the old United Reform Church at the junction of Carmarthen Road and Convent Street closed.
The group found that they were very faded and in need of restoration and it was thought that they would have to apply for a grant to complete the work. When they sought quotes to complete the job they found it would cost between £3,000 and £5,000.
As a result members decided to take it upon themselves to complete the task and instead bought marker pens for £2.50 to re-ink the inscriptions having cleaned off the remaining ink first. One of the memorials has now been completed and the second one is halfway done with the aim of completing the project by November 11 in time for memorial services. New frames are also being constructed for the stones. A booklet is also available for people to look at telling the story of each of the names on the memorial.
