Richibucto remembers 7 brothers

Seven men from Richibucto, N.B., will be among the veterans remembered on Wednesday as Remembrance Day services are planned throughout the province.

The seven Vautour brothers all served in the Armed Forces during the Second World War. Four of them fought for Canada overseas, and only three of the brothers ever returned home.

The band of seven brothers made headlines in 1941 for their commitment to service in the Canadian Forces.

Their niece Loretta Jennings still has a copy of a 1941 newspaper with a photo of her seven uncles. The caption underneath says their service was a great example of patriotism.

Jennings remembers the day she found out that her favourite uncle, Eloi, who was also the youngest of the seven, had been killed trying to help a wounded soldier.

"I was devastated 'cause he was my favourite. When he came home on leave and I'd see him coming, I'd run and jump right in his arms," Jennings said.

All of the brothers have since died, but members of the Vautour family will be thinking of them on Remembrance Day.

'Biggest sacrifice'

Delima Vautour, 95, was married to Leo Vautour, another of the brothers. When her husband left for war, she had a two-year-old son and was two months pregnant.

During his overseas posting, Vautour said, she was constantly waiting for a call with information about her husband.

"I was always worried all the time that he was over there," she said. "I was waiting for a call, maybe he is dead or something."

But after three years and seven months, Leo Vautour finally came home safely to New Brunswick.

Jennings said she hopes people will take a moment on Remembrance Day and reflect on the service that those such as her uncles have given and the impact that has had.

"About how lucky we are to have had these men that put on a uniform and said goodbye to their families, not knowing if they were ever coming back," Jennings said.

"And [they] went over there to keep us free — I think that's got to be the biggest sacrifice any man can do."