The firsthand perspectives of the two major global conflicts of the 20th century are fading.
With every passing year, fewer and fewer veterans remain alive to tell the heroic and tragic stories of the fallen, and the survivors, as a result of Canada’s participation in both world wars.
In fact, there is not a single Canadian alive today who fought in the First World War.
However, it is the purpose of Remembrance Day to ensure those of us still here remain mindful — a mindfulness that recollects the horror and sacrifice of all wars as told by the generations before.
This year on Remembrance Day in Niagara-on-the-Lake, the masses gathered at the Queen Street clock tower cenotaph on Nov. 11 for the annual ceremony.
Among them were the old, the not-so-old and the young — the stewards of the memories many Canadians strive to keep alive.
Of them, Grade 7 students from NOTL’s St. Michael Catholic School stood along the curb of the town’s majestic main corridor watching the parade of both active and veteran service people, the laying of wreaths and the voices of their leaders.
Huddled in a bunch, they were all too young to remember life during the two world wars.
For that reason, every Nov. 11, since 1919 — one year after First World War hostilities ceased in Europe — those committed to the cause of honouring Canada’s veterans have decided, annually, to never let them forget.
For 12-year-old St. Mike’s student Luke Simpson, being there on Queen Street created a sense of respect and appreciation for those who gave so much.
One of the first things he spoke of when asked what this day meant to him was sacrifice.
“It meant a lot because I got to see all the veterans who sacrificed something for their country,” he said about the many men and women in attendance who either served or continue to serve in the military.
Simpson was grateful to his school for making sure it didn’t let him forget.
“We learn a lot about what they did for us, for us to live and have freedom and that there are others that are still fighting for their freedom,” he said.
The service gave him a perspective of just how valuable those freedoms and lives are.
“You see all of us coming together,” he said, “signifying that it’s a better time than it was.”
“It feels like a nation united.”
“I’m very proud, and I’m really happy that we live in a country where we can live safely, and we don’t need to worry about air strikes or anything,” he added.
Hell from above is something that 13-year-old Mariia Yevtushemko knows all too well about.
The Royal Oak student, who moved from Ukraine to Canada with her family two years ago to flee the war happening there, was chosen by the NOTL Legion to recite the poem “In Flanders Fields.”
She had never heard of Remembrance Day before moving to Canada and was grateful for the opportunity to experience it with her new fellow citizens.
“I’m really thankful for Canada for being here because all the people who are here are really nice,” she said.
It’s her experiences in Ukraine, her opportunity to recite the poem and a feeling of being protected in Canada that gives Yevtushemko her understanding of what peace means to people here.
“Everyone is friendly and everything is peaceful,” said of her time in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
There’s no fights,” she started, correcting just slightly. “I mean, maybe a little friendly fight, but not, like, big. It’s safe.”
Twelve-year-old Sienna deSouza is a classmate of Simpson’s and she was very interested in hearing the names of the many people from NOTL who served in the world wars.
For her, it brought the whole experience of Remembrance Day that much closer to home.
“It’s really special,” she said. “It’s crazy that so many people, even just from Niagara-on-the-Lake, went to war.”
“It’s kind of surreal.”
Like Simpson, deSouza is grateful that her school has worked so hard to make sure she has the knowledge to tell the stories to others.
“It’s a big focus, which is great,” she said.
“We just learn about it all and how important it is,” she added. “It’s so important to keep the memory alive.”
