A MINUTE'S silence will be held at the site of what will become Scotland Covid memorial to mark the second anniversary of the first national lockdown.
It is a poignant day for many who lost loved ones during the pandemic and anyone affected during the past two years.
Known as a national day of reflection, an initiative launched by cancer care charity Marie Curie Cancer, the midday minute's silence will be marked in Glasgow's Pollok Country Park.
The Herald has been leading a campaign to create a national Covid memorial as a fitting tribute to who lost their lives during the pandemic and Glasgow City Council stepped forward with the offer to host the location of the memorial.
We have raised more than £140,000 towards our fundraising target and work is due to start at one of the key locations in the park, the Riverside Grove, close to Pollok House and the Riverside car park.
Artist Alec Finlay pictured at what will become the Riverside Grove, part of Scotland's Covid Memorial at Pollok Country Park. Photograph by Colin Mearns.
It is here that we will gather for 12noon when our Covid memorial artist Alec Finlay will read passages gathered as part of the I remember project. They are short sentences which have been collected and have formed part of a communal memory of the pandemic. Read by actor Robert Carlyle, they will feature in an audio which will be accessible at the memorial which consists of a series of linked tree supports in the park. The supports, which have been created through physical poses reflecting thoughts and emotions, will create a memorial walk in the park.
A private ceremony was held at the Riverside Grove site at Pollok Country Park as boxes of I remembers were buried in a kist
Bereaved families and those affected by Covid will be able to lay flowers at the site tomorrow and wildflowers, which will surround the location, will also be planted.
Claire Collins, Marie Curie's bereavement coordinator, said coming together on March 23 is a way to "reflect on our collective losses in a mindful way".
She added: "There are still millions of people living with the deep trauma of losing a loved one during the last two years and we hope everyone finds comfort and embraces the day, whether you have had a close bereavement or not."
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Work is under way at the entrance closest to Pollokshaws West station end and that entrance will be closed.
Drivers are advised is to enter the park at the entrance close to Haggs Castle Golf Club at Dumbreck Road.
It is an open event which everyone is welcome to attend. Changes have been made around access in Pollok Country Park with car parking charges in place. For information on how to get to get there go to https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/pollokcountrypark
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