Kenney leads drive to fund awards

With the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 2017, approaching, the Vimy Foundation is working to ensure the battle is as significant to Canada’s future as it is to its past.

Members of Parliament, the military and students will gather at the French Embassy on Sussex Drive Tuesday night for the fifth annual Vimy Reception fundraiser, hosted by ambassador Nicolas Chapuis.

Defence Minister Jason Kenney is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the $200-per-person cocktail reception at the ambassador’s residence, which features 1930s art deco architecture and interior design and overlooks the Ottawa River.

Proceeds from the event will go to fund student awards and scholarships, including the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize, a European summer trip for youths 15 to 17 from Canada, the United Kingdom and France to learn about the intertwined history of the three nations in the First World War.

With the loss of Canada’s First World War veterans, Bruce Burrows, chair of the 2015 Vimy Reception Committee and member of the Vimy Foundation board of directors, says it’s paramount to engage today’s youth to preserve and promote Canada’s First World War legacy.

“We don’t have any more (First World War) soldiers,” said Burrows. “They are gone, so we are really looking to Canada’s youth to pick up the mantle at its most fundamental level.”

Next week is Vimy week, and the foundation is encouraging all Canadians on April 9 to wear the Vimy pin (which can be purchased through the foundation or the Canadian War Museum) in celebration of that turning point in Canada’s history.

“We are not celebrating a military victory in and of itself,” said Burrows. “It’s much bigger than that because this is the first time that we really had full control of our own forces and it was a tremendous success.”