Legion, ANAVETs and community gather to honour those who made the ultimate sacrifice
A large crowd gathered in the Canterbury High School auditorium on Sunday, Nov. 5, to remember.
The Woodstock Royal Canadian Legion Branch 11 hosts Canterbury Remembers annually on the Sunday before Remembrance Day to honour those who fought for their nation’s freedom. Legion and ANAVETs Unit 95 members joined local officials and more than 50 members of the public for the solemn ceremony.
Lakeland Ridges Mayor Tanya Cloutier, serving as MC for the ceremony, was joined on stage by Pastor Trevor Williams and Rev. Canon Walter Williams, who delivered the message of Remembrance.
Williams noted Remembrance Day provides an opportunity for today’s generations to pay homage to the previous generations who fought for the freedoms they enjoy today. He said that, unfortunately, the perils of war are not limited to our grandparents and great-grandparents. He noted we need only watch the news to see the threat of expanding wars in the Middle East and Kuwait.
“Remembrance is a time to think about what happened in the past and what’s happening today,” Williams said.
He recounted a story of a student program called “No Stone Left Alone” in the Oromocto area, where students are given poppies and the names of veterans in local cemeteries. He said the students, during a visit to the cemetery, search for their named veterans and place their poppies on their headstones.
He praised the program, saying the students diligently searched for the names and gained an understanding of the veteran’s sacrifice.
Canterbury students offered their reflections on Remembrance Day through hand-drawn stories and posters taped to the front of the stage.
Led by Piper Kate LaFrance and under the command of Sgt-At-Arms Bruce Hendry, a colour guard featuring Legion and ANAVET members opened and closed the ceremony.
The ceremony featured prayers, Scripture readings, hymns, the reciting of Flanders Fields, and the playing of The Last Post and The Reveille, separated by a moment of silence.
It included the reading of the Honour Roll naming Canterbury area men who made the ultimate sacrifice in the First and Second World Wars and the Korean Conflict and the laying of dozens of wreaths and crosses.
