Remembrance Day: reflections from our colleague Sammi

Remembrance Day has always been deeply personal to me.

Having served as an Officer in the British Army's Royal Engineers, I know what it means to wear the uniform, to stand shoulder to shoulder with people who become more than colleagues. They become family.

My service left me with injuries and scars that I carry to this day. But some of the deepest scars are not the ones you can see.

I remember the comrades I lost. The laughter we shared, the friendships we forged, and the futures they never got to live.

I was fortunate enough to come home. Others weren't. And that is something I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

For those of us who served, Remembrance Day isn't just about looking back. It's about remembering the people behind the names, the families left behind, and those who returned home forever changed.

Some veterans carry physical injuries. Others fight silent battles long after their service has ended. Both deserve our understanding, compassion and respect.

To my colleagues and friends at Calisen, when we pause for those two minutes of silence, please remember that behind every poppy is a story, a sacrifice and someone who is missed.

I don't wear a poppy to glorify war. I wear it to remember those who never came home, and to honour those who did but were never quite the same again and this encompasses all creed and colour in war zones across the world we are all someone’s daughter or son whichever side of the line we find ourselves on.

Time moves on. Life moves forward. But some names, some faces and some memories never leave us.

They gave their tomorrows. We owe them our remembrance.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

Lest We Forget.