Nain teens to recite Commitment to Remembrance at Beaumont-Hamel
After the community pulled together to help out, a group of teens from Nain, Labrador are getting the experience of a lifetime in France this week for the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel.
The trip was organized by teacher Tony Tibbo, who will take 14 students to England and France, along with three other chaperones. Originally an overseas trip had been planned for 2017 — but plans were frantically changed so the students could be in Beaumont-Hamel for the centennial anniversary of one of the province's darkest days.
'Very excited'
The highlight of the trip is the ceremony at Beaumont-Hamel on July 1, where the students will not only join thousands of others from around the world, but will actually take part in the event itself.
At the request of Veterans Affairs Canada, students Ethan Shiwak and Taylor Ivany will be reciting the Commitment to Remembrance in the Inuktitut language during the ceremony.
Both students have a personal connection to the Newfoundland Regiment — Shiwak's great, great-uncle John Shiwak was part of the Regiment and Ivany's great, great-grandfather was a sniper.
"I'm very excited," Ethan Shiwak told CBC's Labrador Morning prior to his trip. "My family was telling me he was a really great man, and yesterday we watched a video that kind of explained his story in World War One."
Shiwak has been busy practicing his lines, and knows the recitation off by heart at this point. He said when he is reading those words in front of royalty and thousands of others, he'll be thinking of his family — both those 100 years in the past, and those who are proud of him back in Nain this week.
"I will be thinking about my family back home and how they feel about me, and I'll also be thinking of my Uncle John," he said.
"My mother is proud beyond words and she is always going to talk about it when I come back I think."
Listen to Tony Tibbo and Ethan Shiwak's interview on Labrador Morning below:
With files from Labrador Morning