A coach party from the Abergavenny area went on a trip to Normandy organised by Clive Morgan of European Heritage to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day and attend two of the special ceremonies held as well as more intimate services at graves or memorials relating to soldiers with a South Wales connection.

The end of the week saw a special event in the village of Mondrainville near Caen at the primary school which is named after two veterans from Abergavenny, Dave Edwards and Tom Griffiths.

During the attack to take Hill 112, the two soldiers from the 2nd Mons briefly took shelter in an empty house in the village which the Regiment would eventually liberate. It was in this house that Dave Edwards saw on the floor a photo of a woman with her baby outside the house. Dave kept the photo and some years later when the two friends went on a sentimental journey to where they had seen much action, they set out to find the house.

They learned that it belonged to the then Mayor, Jean-Louis le Goff who was the baby in the photo. There then began a long association with the village leading to the renaming of the school and a link with Harold Road Primary School (now Cantref School) in Abergavenny. The two veterans returned regularly and, after Tom’s death in 2011, Dave continued to visit, often talking to the children about how valuable peace was. In 2019 he was awarded the Legion d’Honneur and , after his death in 2020, the link was maintained by his son Christopher with messages of support from Dave’s widow, Diane.

To commemorate the 80th Anniversary of D-Day the pupils of the school made a series of murals celebrating the lives of Dave and Tom. A final panel highlighted the word “Paix”, the French for peace.

Before he died Dave commissioned a shield to be awarded annually to a pupil who had displayed not only hard work, but also kindness to others. The shield was presented to the headteacher, Mme Caroline de Pechy, by Mrs Nicole Lock, one of Tom’s daughters, as the Edwards family was unfortunately unable to attend due to illness.