Back row, left to right: Jeanet, Raymond, Jane, Andy and daughter-in-law Jayne Light. Front: Andy and Jayne’s children, Ellen (5), Jacob (9) and Grace (5). Picture by Rob Currie (00762433)

FOR around a quarter of a century, Raymond and Jeanet Light have visited the Island every August to watch the Battle of Flowers.

So when it came to marking their 50th wedding anniversary, there was only one way that the golden couple wanted to celebrate.

In honour of their special day, which was back in April, the pair toyed with the idea of holding a lavish party in their home town of Wolverhampton. However, the Battle-loving couple soon decided that the best celebration possible would be to fly their whole family to the Island, to enjoy this year’s parade with them.

As a result, eight members of the family are currently in the Island, ready to attend tomorrow’s event. The couple were married on 18 April 1959 and have attended the Battle of Flowers every year since the mid-1980s.

Mr Light (82) told the JEP that he and his wife (76) loved everything about the parade.

‘We thought about holding a big lavish party to celebrate our golden wedding, but then we decided that instead of that we would like to spend the money on treating our family to a trip to Jersey to see the Battle,’ said Mr Light. ‘We are really looking forward to watching the Battle as a family. Everyone is really, really excited.’

Attending the parade with the couple will be their daughter Jane, as well as their son Andrew, his wife, Jayne, and their three children, Jacob (9) and twins Ellen and Grace (5). The family are all staying at the West Hill Country Hotel for the week.

As well as attending the Battle, Mr Light said that the couple always went to Jersey Pottery and the Gold Centre on their annual visit. ‘I used to have an engineering business and my accountant was a regular visitor to Guernsey,’ recalled Mr Light.

‘He recommended it so we went there first for two years running. Then someone said we should try Jersey and we did. We loved it and we’ve been back every year.

‘Me and my wife both love the Battle of Flowers, because the artistry is fantastic and the hard work that goes into the floats is amazing. We’ve got a number of Battle of Flowers videos at home going back years, which is something lovely to look back on.’

For a number of years, the couple have always phoned the Battle office well in advance, and requested the same seats every year. ‘We always ask for the stand nearest the grandstand,’ said Mr Light.