Ngaruawahia poppies made out of recycled materials and leftover paint

Citycare created the poppies, and placed them on the empty garden beds. Photo / Supplied

Red poppies made out of recycled materials and leftover paint have been placed on the Ngaruawahia roundabout, to commemorate Anzac Day.

Waikato District Council acting open spaces team leader Kim Wood says Citycare created the poppies, and placed them on the empty garden beds and roundabout in Ngaruawahia.

"We wanted to do something to honour Anzac Day. Most of the materials were recycled, except for the screws and timber stakes. They used old real estate signs and red paint they had left over."

Anzac Day services will not go ahead this year due to the restrictions in place in response to COVID-19. Residents are being encouraged to stand at dawn (6am) in their bubble and listen to the special dawn service broadcast Radio NZ.

The poppies were made using old real estate signs and left over red paint. Photo / Supplied

There are many ways people can get involved, like decorating your letterbox or front window with poppies or baking some Anzac biscuits.

"People need to stay in their bubbles, even when we move to Alert Level 3, but we hope that the poppies are enjoyed by local people when they are driving to their local supermarket or out doing exercise. The poppies will be able to be re-used again next year."

During Lockdown, Citycare have worked alongside Waikato District Council to continue providing essential services, such as closing boat ramps, playgrounds and walkways as well as emptying rubbish bins, collecting illegal dumping and carrying out essential structure repair work.

For more information about alternative ways to commemorate Anzac Day, visit the RSA National and NZ Defence Force Facebook event 'Stand At Dawn – Anzac Day 2020' or www.standatdawn.com.

• To make a donation to the RSA visit this Givealittle page
• Join us for the virtual Anzac Day Dawn Service from 6am on Saturday at nzherald.co.nz or Newstalk ZB
• Print out our special Anzac Day poster, pin it in your window and help us line the streets with poppies.