Canadians are paying respects to the countryB次元官网网址檚 war dead at sombre Remembrance Day ceremonies across the country Friday.
Thousands of people wearing poppies stood in silence as cannons boomed and military aircraft flew past the National War Memorial in Ottawa when the clock on the Peace Tower struck 11 a.m.
Navy Capt. Bonita Mason said a prayer during the ceremony, and noted the ongoing war in Ukraine and the importance of military families while calling on Canadians to set aside their divisions and embrace reconciliation and dialogue.
B次元官网网址淚n a world fraught with struggle and instability, where war continues to rage in Ukraine, we gather to affirm with one another our determination to remove the barriers of division in a spirit of reconciliation,B次元官网网址� Mason said.
B次元官网网址淲e seek dialogue with one another in all spheres: social, political and religious. That in doing so, we may achieve a lasting peace. May we all strive to continue our efforts to build a better world.B次元官网网址�
Rabbi Idan Scher in a benediction noted the sacrifices that those who serve in uniform are often asked to make to protect CanadiansB次元官网网址� freedoms, and called on the country to stand behind its veterans.
B次元官网网址淣ot by simply saying thank you, not by simply supporting our veterans and their families through words, but rather through action, with our time, with our attention and with our resources,B次元官网网址� Scher said.
Among those in attendance were Gov. Gen. Mary Simon, Veterans Affairs Minister Lawrence MacAulay, and chief of the defence staff Gen. Wayne Eyre.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was absent from the Ottawa ceremony as he travels to an international summit in Cambodia. His wife Sophie Gr茅goire Trudeau and their oldest son Xavier did attend.
Before the start of the ceremony, dozens of veterans of different ages and backgrounds marched through the streets of Ottawa alongside serving Armed Forces members to drums and pipes.
At the National War Memorial, a flag that was reportedly carried by a Canadian soldier into battle at Dieppe, France, in August 1942 was displayed, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the raid. A wreath was also laid for Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September.
Similar scenes are playing out at cenotaphs and war memorials across the rest of the country amid a semblance of normalcy following two years of COVID-19 restrictions that included masks and scaled-down parades.
Hundreds of people gathered in front of Halifax City Hall on a warm and sunny day to honour CanadaB次元官网网址檚 war dead as members of the Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force stood at attention to the mournful sounds of the Last Post.
Gun salutes boomed at 11 a.m. in Fredericton, N.B., as babies in strollers, dogs on leashes and children holding parentsB次元官网网址� hands watched the ceremony under partly sunny skies. A few children giggled and held their parentsB次元官网网址� hands tighter when the first gun salute went off.
Outside the cenotaph at Old City Hall in Toronto, Alistair Stark, 73, stood in uniform for the cityB次元官网网址檚 ceremony.
B次元官网网址淢y fatherB次元官网网址檚 a war veteran,B次元官网网址� Stark said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not long back from Italy where I was laying a wreath in remembrance of my uncle, who was killed in Italy.B次元官网网址�
Stark served in the military reserves for 16 years as part of the 48th Highlanders. His father was born in Scotland and served with the 11th Hussars in the English Regiment.
B次元官网网址�(My father) landed at D-Day, IB次元官网网址檓 very proud of himB次元官网网址� said Stark. B次元官网网址淢y uncle served in Italy for the Black Watch (of the Royal Highland Regiment) and he was killed just outside Monte Cassino. And thatB次元官网网址檚 why I was over there laying a wreath in his memory.B次元官网网址�
Ontario Lt.-Gov. Elizabeth Dowdeswell and Mayor John Tory were among the dignitaries present at the Toronto ceremony.
B次元官网网址淭oday our soldiers are deployed around the world to fight for and preserve the freedoms that we enjoy back home,B次元官网网址� said Dowdeswell.
B次元官网网址淎nd yet, we cannot and we must not take these freedoms for granted. With all of our talk of building back better after this pandemic, we must prove that we have actually learned the lessons of the past where thereB次元官网网址檚 disagreement. May we spark dialogue. Where there is division, may we always strive to forge unity.B次元官网网址�
In Montreal, retired lieutenant-colonel Henry Hall was among those gathered at Place du Canada square. Hall was serving as part of a United Nations mission in the Middle East in 1974 when nine comrades died after their plane was shot down.
B次元官网网址淚t was a tough go,B次元官网网址� Hall said. B次元官网网址淚t was very difficult, one of the guys was a good friend of ours and I obviously miss him and I think about him all the time.B次元官网网址�
He added that he would also be thinking about his two grandfathers who served in the army in the First World War, and his father, who was in the navy in Second World War.
About two thousand people gathered at a convention centre in downtown Winnipeg for an in-person return of the largest Remembrance Day event in the city.
Jane Brown attended for the first time on Friday. Brown, who is the president of the Royal Canadian Legion Provincial Council Ladies Auxiliary, said taking part in the events was nerve-racking.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 just a huge crowd. IB次元官网网址檓 a small-town girl.B次元官网网址�
Brown had an uncle who was killed while serving in the Second World War. She said itB次元官网网址檚 important to honour those who sacrificed their lives.
B次元官网网址淲e need to remember and never forget that the sacrifice that was made.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址� With files from Dylan Robertson in Anchorage, Hina Alam in Fredericton, Keith Doucette in Halifax, Jacob Serebrin in Montreal, Tyler Griffith and Jessica Smith in Toronto, and Brittany Hobson in Winnipeg.
The Canadian Press
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