'They mustn't be forgotten': Winnipeggers salute veterans, fallen soldiers on Remembrance Day
Life in Canada 'a fruit of the struggles and sacrifices of the past': 17 Wing chaplain
Capt. Antin Sloboda says Remembrance Day is about giving thanks to generations of men and women who "have answered the call to serve our country."
"Each sacrifice is imprinted in the fabric that shapes the identity of Canada, and thus, cannot be forgotten," said Sloboda, 17 Wing chaplain, at the Monday service at Winnipeg's RBC Convention Centre — the province's largest Remembrance Day service.
"Today is a time to remember that life in Canada as we know it is not a given, it is a fruit of the struggles and sacrifices of the past."
As war rages in Ukraine and the Middle East, Sloboda said this year's Remembrance Day is for Canadians to affirm their determination for peace.
"Let us remember with gratitude the thousands of Canadians who choose today to serve Canada before themselves."
It's been 10 years since the end of the mission in Afghanistan, 60 years of peacekeeping operations in Cyprus, and the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
It has also been 80 years since D-Day, which marked the beginning of the end of the Second World War.
On D-Day, some 14,000 Canadians landed at Juno Beach, in German-occupied France. More than 4,400 Allied troops died that day, the beginning of the bloody 77-day Battle of Normandy and the start of the liberation of France.
"Living in their greatly favoured land, Canadians often seem all too ready to forget that great events ... let them develop and prosper in freedom," Capt. Gabriel Boucher, the master of ceremonies, said at the beginning of the service at the convention centre.
"Many even fail to remember that young Canadian men and women played a major role in the greatest seaborne invasion of all time, the allied assault on Normandy on June 6, 1944."
Veterans know the price paid for Canada's freedom, Boucher said.
"Thank you for your service, both in times of peace and in the face of war," he said.
"Here in Canada and across the globe, your dedication and sacrifices have not gone unnoticed."
A wreath-laying ceremony followed the playing of The Last Post, a minute of silence at 11 a.m. and the reading of In Flanders Fields.
Manitoba Lt.-Gov. Anita Neville laid the first wreath, followed by Memorial Cross representative Dean Smith, federal Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham and several service members and veterans.
Premier Wab Kinew thanked veterans, fallen soldiers and active service members for their service.
"In their sacrifice and service, each of us as Canadians have been given a great gift of a country that upholds democracy and a life of hard-won freedoms," he said in a statement ahead of the ceremony.
'They deserve to be remembered'
The service at the convention centre was one of about a dozen in Winnipeg, including one at Vimy Ridge Memorial Park.
Hundreds showed up for that service held by the Royal Winnipeg Rifles Regiment.
Maj. Richard Desjardins, president of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles Association, says Canadian soldiers serve not just in wars, but also save lives during natural disasters at home, as well as in peacekeeping missions.
"Our soldiers continue to serve, and I think that's the biggest message: Canada doesn't go to gain territory, it usually goes to assist others in need," he told CBC News before the ceremony.
He also said Remembrance Day is for the families of active service members, who endure without their loved ones at home.
Remembrance Day was first observed in 1919 throughout the British Commonwealth. It was originally called Armistice Day to commemorate the armistice agreement that ended the First World War on Nov. 11, 1918, at 11 a.m.
John Robins, a former commanding officer of the Rifles who's now retired, says it's even more important for younger generations to remember the veterans and soldiers who are no longer here.
"If we don't do this every year, they'll be forgotten — and they mustn't be forgotten," he said.
"We have these freedoms that we have because soldiers died getting them for us. They deserve to be remembered and honoured."
Robins was pleased with the turnout at the park, and said it has only been growing.
He says he's been going to Remembrance Day ceremonies since 1959.
"In those years, the streets were full of veterans with rows of medals, and they all looked so old, and now I'm one of those old guys."
With files from Santiago Arias Orozco and Zubina Ahmed