Belong 'Never Forget, Never Again' Holocaust remembrance garden at RHS Tatton 2016 wins silver gilt award!

Belong, and award-winning garden designer, Carolyn Hardern, have joined forces with the Morris Feinmann Homes Trust to create a remembrance garden commemorating victims of the Holocaust.
The award-winning garden – Never Forget, Never Again – was unveiled at RHS Tatton 2016, and was visited by Holocaust survivor, Dr. Peter Kurer, Alan Wilkins and Helen Lister, All three are former chairmen of the Morris Feinmann Homes Trust.
Following the show, the garden will be relocated to Belong Morris Feinmann, a village under construction in Didsbury, due to open in summer 2017. The new village will offer 24-hour specialist nursing and dementia care to older people in Manchester’s Jewish community, thanks to an exciting partnership between the Morris Feinmann Homes Trust and Belong.
Also included in the complex are independent living apartments, which were released last month, resulting in high demand and applications already registered for the majority of properties.
The remembrance garden is created in a circular design, with a mass of white Tranquillity roses providing a seamless area of contemplation. The white is interspersed with blue water forget-me-nots, suggestive of Israeli national colours.
At the garden’s centre, an art installation featuring porcelain lilies with copper stems rises from a pool of reflective water. Birch trees line the outer section of the garden, providing dappled light through their leaves, and underplanted with white flowers. Finally, cubed oak seating evokes the Holocaust memorial in Berlin and provides space for meditation.
Dr. Peter Kurer, retired dentist and formerly a child refugee from Vienna, moved to Manchester in 1938 after being saved from the Holocaust by the Quaker movement in a mass effort to rescue Jews from Germany and Austria.
In the years since, Peter has dedicated significant time to commemorating the work of the Quakers and ensuring that older members of the Jewish community felt safe and secure as they grew older. His work was recognised by his appointment as Honorary Life President of the Trust.
Speaking about the project, Peter commented: “The garden is a fitting tribute to loved ones lost. Many will have personal memories of the Holocaust or know somebody who was affected, and this remembrance garden will help to make sure that horrific events like the Holocaust are never allowed to be forgotten.”
Tracy Paine, Director of Operations at Belong, added: “We were delighted to work with Carolyn again this year for the RHS Tatton show. She has helped us to provide a stunning, peaceful space for Belong Morris Feinmann customers, and the project underlines our continuing commitment to ensuring our villages feature high quality outdoor spaces, which provide valuable therapeutic and practical benefits to our customers and especially those with dementia.”