Upon leaving Olds Koinonia Christian School's Remembrance Day ceremony on Nov. 6, Grade 8 student Grace Seeley had a simple message for the men and women who have served, and continue to serve, in Canada's Armed Forces.
“Thank you for fighting for us.”
Grace said her great uncle served in and survived the Second World War and while she's still learning about Canada's involvement in such conflicts, she came away from the ceremony with strong feelings about war.
“It's really sad that people have to go out there because you never know if they're coming back,” she said. “I just find it really sad.”
The entire school came together in patient and attentive silence for the ceremony, where the Grade 5 class recited John McCrae's poem In Flanders Fields for the gathering, Grade 3 students Andrew Vass and Rebekah LeMesurier laid a wreath before a Remembrance Day display and Grade 12 student Jessie Rooks played the bagpipes.
Students were also shown photographs and videos of Canadians serving in various wars during the past century and the school observed a traditional minute of silence and prayed for peace.
At the beginning of the ceremony, teacher Jessica Pelletier explained how Nov. 11, the date the First World War ended, came to be Remembrance Day.
“This horrific conflict finally came to a close under the somber, leaden clouds of Nov. 11, 1918,” she told the gathering. “An armistice agreement, which stopped the fighting, was signed by both sides in the conflict in a forest in the French city of Compiègne at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.”
She also explained that, on the first anniversary of Armistice Day, England's King George V asked nations within the British Empire and Commonwealth to observe a stillness at 11 a.m.
“That is why we have come to hold Remembrance Day each and every Nov. 11.”
Teacher Gerald Rempel also challenged the gathering to consider how people today can remember events they have not experienced.
“We need to get to know the stories of those who were there,” he said. “Read them, watch the documentaries on TV, talk to veterans, listen to the news, be aware of those present conflicts. Let the stories touch your heart. Imagine your father or mother or sister or brother leaving for the battlefield and not returning home.
“Mourn with the families who have lost loved ones and Remembrance Day will take on a personal meaning.”
The Olds Albertan will have full coverage of the community's Remembrance Day ceremony from Nov. 11 in its Nov. 19 issue.
