KAGAWONG—After a two-year pandemic hiatus, the Kagawong Cenotaph Board has announced the return of the community’s Remembrance Day service at the Park Centre.
“Covid-19 prevented services from occurring in 2020 and 2021, except for a brief wreath laying ceremony that was conducted outdoors at the cenotaph,” said cenotaph chair Rick Nelson.
“Several military guests and veterans will be in attendance, along with local MPP Michael Mantha who will join others in laying wreaths,” said Mr. Nelson. “This year’s ceremony will cover a number of themes to reflect historical military anniversaries.”
Those themes include the 80th anniversary of the 1942 Dieppe raid that cost many Canadian lives, noted Mr. Nelson. Cenotaph Board member Dianne Fraser will share her thoughts on Canadian Peacekeeping and Mr. Nelson will recall the Cuban Missile Crisis. “It’s a story I wish to dedicate to the late cenotaph chairman Peter Fletcher and other Cold War veterans,” said Mr. Nelson. “I promised Peter he’d tell a Cold War story at an upcoming Remembrance Day service and there is no better Cold War story than the Cuban Missile Crisis,” he said. “This year is the 60th anniversary of that event so Mr. Nelson said he feels it’s a good fit to tell that story at the service. “Even though it’s been 60 years since the world came to the brink of nuclear war, classified information is still coming out revealing the confrontation between NATO countries (including Canada) and the Soviet Union was even closer than we thought,” he said.
The Kagawong Remembrance service will get underway at 11 am, upstairs at the Kagawong Park Centre on Friday, November 11.
Lest We Forget.
