In this Calvados village, a completely unique Peace Garden

Originally this project was not at all planned to mark the 80^e anniversary of D-Day. And for good reason, the “file” goes back almost 10 years before, when there was talk of creating a twinning. At the time, it was the municipal councilor, Patrick Charlemagne (today, president of twinning) who raised the idea of ​​twinning with theGermany.

Le Tourneur (Souleuvre en Bocage) has therefore worked for a long time to create European links.

From visits to meetings which began in 2014, an official charter was signed with Sainkt Ulrich Bei Steyr (Austria) in 2019 after a first meeting between the Austrians and the Normans the previous year. This association also strengthens what already exists in Beny-Bocage which is twinned with Krzywin in Poland.

With the creation of the new commune of Souleuvre in Bocage, the pairings unite. The exchanges follow one another. It is there in Austria that the twins discover the Peace Wall. An achievement that resonates in the mind of the deputy mayor of Tourneur, Didier Duchemin.

We have limited costs

From idea to realization, there was only one step which today has been taken since the Peace Garden de Souleuvre has just been created at Le Tourneur. It is located next to the school and the city stadium, on communal land. “We limited costs by involving the technical services of Souleuvre,” explains Didier Duchemin.

This is a path which allows visitors to discover the Peace Wall, then an installation of blue standing stones from the Pinel mill, “donated by a resident”. In the middle of the system, a sculpture created by the Vire agricultural high school must be installed. “We are also going to have a insect hotela hedgehog shelter,” adds the deputy mayor who reveals the news bocage hedge planted around the site.

As an extension of this approach, the municipality of Souleuvre has joined the French Association of Municipalities, Departments and Regions for Peace (AFCDRP-Mayors for Peace France) since January 1st. This is a network of French communities who have joined the international Mayors for Peace network, chaired by the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

In this context, Souleuvre is committed to long term in a program of actions in favor of Peace. “We are going to involve all generations in the actions that will be linked to the Peace Garden,” assures Didier Duchemin, who confides that the twinning with Austria and Poland is very active today.

We meet by video every three, every 2 months. It is a real tripartite approach which allows us to maintain a strong link

Link that will come to fruition Sunday July 28, 2024, during ceremonies linked to 80th D-Day. Didier Duchemin quickly announces a small part of the program which will be revealed in due time: “The twins will be welcomed. We are particularly expecting the Austrian and Polish orchestras. THE priests of the three communes will be present for the mass.

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