BASINGSTOKE'S quest for St George's Day to be made a national holiday has gained an ally.

In the week that America celebrates one of its special times of the year - Thanksgiving Day - an ex-pat has given her backing to our campaign.

Sharon Glen, 49, moved to Basingstoke in 1981 after marrying a Scotsman, and makes a big deal of St George's Day as well as the traditional events in her homeland.

Mrs Glen, a mother of three, said: "I hang a St George's flag outside of my house on the day. I think you should be proud of where you come from - whether you live there now or you were born there.

"It is nice to celebrate all that is good about the country in which you live. Too often we forget.

"People say that Americans will hang out a flag at any excuse.

"But during the Golden Jubilee and the World Cup, I started seeing England flags around and thought that it was great. It is not being xenophobic, it is about being proud of where you are."

Mrs Glen, who was born in Washington DC, now lives in The Street, Rotherwick.

She celebrated Thanksgiving Day with her family and five of her daughter's university friends, of which two were ex-pats spending their first Thanksgiving away from home.

Mrs Glen, who works at The Loddon School, was to take part in an assembly at the school on Friday, November 26, to teach children about the American tradition.

She said: "I would like to see all people be proud of where they come from. People tend to laugh at Americans because they are very patriotic, but it does give you a sense of belonging."

Petitions for St George's Day to be made a national holiday are available for readers to sign at The Gazette's headquarters in Pelton Road, and at the town centre office in Church Street.

So if you want to show your support, pop in during normal office hours from Monday to Friday and sign one of the forms.

You can also download forms for signing from this website by clicking on the St George's Day campaign folder in our "campaigns" section.

Once completed, any forms that are downloaded should be sent to the campaign address shown on the panel below.

If the support is there, The Gazette will take the campaign to the Houses of Parliament to show how strongly people in Basingstoke believe that the day of England's patron saint should be made a public holiday.

The Gazette wants to hear from local people about how the town and borough can build on the wave of patriotism shown on April 23 this year, so that next year sees an even bigger civic celebration of St George's Day.