Welland remembers military men and women
This Remembrance Day is a time to commemorate several important monumental times of the past.
This year marks the 100-year anniversary of the armistice of the First World War. The conflict was officially ended Nov. 11, 1918.
It has also been 65 years since the end of the Korean War, the 10-year anniversary since the first national peacekeepers’ day, as well as the 75th commemoration of the invasion of Sicily, the start of the Italian campaign in the First World War.
Paul Racicot, president of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 4, said the men and women who perished in every conflict deserve to be remembered.
“We live in a great country, thanks to our past and fallen heroes,” he said during a ceremony at Welland-Crowland War Memorial at Chippawa Park Sunday.
Mayor Frank Campion also delivered remarks, saying the present and future is a result of what has taken place in the past.
“We’re able to express ourselves freely and that’s a result of the sacrifices made by the people we are celebrating today,” he said.
Said Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch, “All of us owe a deep gratitude to those who fought and gave their lives.”
Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey said the local legion and everything it does for its veterans and the city should not go unrecognized.
“Branch 4 is an integral part of our community,” he said, noting this is a “time for Canadians to connect to our history.”
Branch 4 will hold its Sunday, Nov. 11, ceremony at the Morningstar Avenue legion hall.