A stained-glass window in memory of a soldier killed in Afghanistan has been dedicated at an Essex church, reports the Daily Telegraph.
Captain Daniel Read, who worked in bomb disposal with 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment, Royal Logistics Corps, died in Afghanistan on January 11, 2010 after being caught in an IED blast.
He had recently returned to Helmand after recuperating from shrapnel wounds sustained three months earlier.
His wife Lorraine and father Les were devastated by the news. "There are no words that can describe the feeling of losing your own child," said his father. "He's my son, my only son. I've lost my mother and my father and it's awful but that's the natural order of things. Your child? That changes your life."
Recalling the day he heard that Daniel had died, he said: "I was clearing the snow on my patio and the phone rang. It was Lou, repeating over and over again: 'Dan's dead'."
Originally, Read wanted Dan's name to be inscribed on a war memorial in their home town, Rainham. However, Medway Council refused permission and his thoughts turned to a memorial window instead. He raised the £1,500 he needed with help from family, friends, Daniel's old school, Rainham Mark Grammar School and local market stall holders.
He told the Telegraph: "We kept it simple. The dove symbolises a new beginning and the leaf in its mouth represents the Queen's Commendation for Bravery that Dan was awarded.
"There are poppies in the foreground, and rocky mountain in the background – because Dan loved rock climbing.
"The ATO flash and Dan's regiment, 11 EOD, appear on either side of the motto of the Royal Engineers, which Daniel joined when he was 16."
St Margaret's minister, Rev Judy Henning, said: "It is beautiful when the light shines through. It was all Les's work. He had to get all sorts of permissions but the way it turned out, I think it is more appropriate for Dan."
Daniel's ashes are buried outside the window. "This is another honour they gave me," Read said. "I can't explain what this means to have him out there, just outside that window. Daniel's death still breaks my heart, but I can live with it now."
He is now using surplus funds and raising more to install stained glass in two large windows underneath his son's, dedicated to all the soldiers who have fought since World War Two.
