THE villagers of Northlew will ensure that those who gave their lives for Britain's freedom during the First World War will be remembered in the centenary of the start of the war. Villagers have created the world's longest poppy avenue, planting thousands of poppy seeds along the verges of the road from Northlew to Okehampton — planting seeds along more than 20 miles of verges. One direction points in an exact line to Flanders, and the other is the way the new recruits would have walked to go to the train station and off to war — with many never to return to the village. Fifty kilos of poppy seeds were donated by Sutton Seeds, and the firm is also selling Northlew Poppy seeds to raise money for the Northlew fund to build a new community shop. The distinctive crimson and black flowers will commemorate the brave servicemen who fell during the Great War, when millions lost their lives. In particular, the flowers will honour the men from Northlew who lost their lives during the conflict. Although a small village, Northlew has the sad distinction of having lost the highest proportion of its enlisting population of any municipality in Britain during the war. Of the 100 men who enlisted, 24 were killed. A small area of Northlew's square has been sown with grass seed from Flanders and Northlew Poppy seeds, to create a 'Corner of a Foreign Field' in a nod to the poem 'The Soldier' penned by Rupert Brooke. The poem was written while Brooke was on leave at Christmas in 1914, and reflects on the legacy of soldiers involved in the war. Chris Marson, the owner of Northlew Village Stores, initiated the project. He said that he wanted to create a visual memorial that would stick in the minds of everyone. 'Taking the time to go to a church service and commemorate the anniversary is very nice, but it is then easy to forget a few days later. The poppy avenue will act as a reminder all the time as people travel the road to go to work or school each time they drive by. 'It will force people to remember, and show that Northlew does remember those men who gave their lives.' Alongside these efforts to mark the centenary, the village will hold a day of remembrance on June 28. In the twilight, houses surrounding the village square will be illuminated with projections of the war highlighting the bombings, life in the trenches, and the after effects of the war, such as shell shock. A Canadian oak tree will be planted in the village park on the day — Canadian oaks turn a blood red colour around the time of Armistice Day, November 11. An RAF SE5 biplane made in 1917 will fly over the village, and a spectacular parade involving servicemen from HMS Drake, the Royal British Legion and many others will take place. An exhibition of First World War memorabilia, including photographs, uniform and other war-related items will be on show for three weeks in the village. Anyone who has First World War memorabilia they would like to share for the exhibition can contact Mr Marson on 01409 220129 or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected] Items will also be lent to schools to help teach children about the war, and the importance of learning lessons from the bloodshed. Passing on those lessons has been at the forefront of the commemorations in Northlew, with children from the village primary school doing biographies of the soldiers from the village who fought in the war. They will share their findings at the memorial service on June 28. Mr Marson said: 'The poppies are now planted and many are now up to a couple of inches, but we thought why stop there? 'Northlew lost the most men proportionately in the country, so we felt we should do the most to mark their sacrifice. 'The commemoration event on June 28 is going to be the biggest event in Northlew's history, with around 2,000 people scheduled to show up. It will be huge.' Volunteers are being sought to help make the event run smoothly. If you would like to be involved, contact Chris Marson. To find out more visit http://www.facebook.com/northlewpoppy">www.facebook.com/northlewpoppy