Hooray ... the dark days of winter finally are behind us and it's time to say Happy Easter to all our readers in Suffolk and across the world thanks to our network of www.eveningstar.co.uk readers.

Hooray ... the dark days of winter finally are behind us and it's time to say Happy Easter to all our readers in Suffolk and across the world thanks to our network of www.eveningstar.co.uk users.

The extra joy of Easter 2007 is that we're set for a cracking weekend of sunshine and warmth ... that cold wind will soon be a distant memory!

So enjoy the break and take with you our very best wishes for the year ahead.

My mind stretches back just a few weeks, to the last major holiday, Christmas 2006, when darkness, death and great sadness became the hallmark of the winter season during the Ipswich killings saga.

Whilst police investigations continue apace - and a man awaits trial later this year - our community is still sticking together and working for a better future for some of those who are victims of drugs, dealers and pimps.

The Evening Star's Somebody's Daughter crusade goes from strength to strength with many events planned as part of fund-raising for a refuge for those who might fall victim to evil, despicable, people. Meanwhile, we are "naming and shaming" the kerb crawlers who are, amazingly, still visiting the so-called Ipswich red-light area.

As we promised in a front page article on December 23 - NOW - Let's Not Forget Them! We haven't.

As ever, our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the five women taken from us last November and December. We'll keep fighting, as we promised, and we won't forget that there are many, many, victims of this dreadful saga.

So it's compliments of the season to you all - do try to rest and relax this Easter season ... leave the frighteningly-busy world alone for a while.

NIGEL PICKOVER