Remembrance Day ceremony held for 1st time with Newfoundland's Unknown Soldier

Hundreds congregated in downtown St. John's Monday morning to pay tribute to Newfoundland and Labrador's fallen soldiers, and honoured the dead for the first time at the newly refurbished National War Memorial and tomb of the Unknown Solider.

The Royal Canadian Legion's annual parade and ceremony began at the Sergeants' Memorial on Queens Road, with a long line of uniformed Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP members marching toward the National War Memorial.

The ceremony drew crowds stretching far past the memorial itself, all watching solemnly as military leaders, veterans and politicians laid wreaths and poppies at the foot of the monolith.

Perry Grandy, chair of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment Advisory Council, led Monday's ceremony by referencing ongoing conflicts around the globe.

"The future of global peace and stability remains elusive," he said, going on to list the major military operations that prompted Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to enlist and serve over the past several decades.

"Men and women from Newfoundland and Labrador served with distinction during the world wars, the Korean War, peacekeeping and peace support operations, the Cold War, and most recently during Canada's longest combat engagement, the Afghanistan War," Grandy said. 

"Many veterans of today, young and old, continue to suffer physical and mental injury."

Barry Mackay, a retired member of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, has been attending the ceremony for the last 40 years.

"It's a tribute to those who have sacrificed their lives ... and had injuries while serving. I think it's important we remember their contribution," Mackay said.

Jim Flanigan, from St. Petersburg, Fla., was a member of the American Navy, and says he's long respected Newfoundland and Labrador's dedication to honouring its veterans.

"I'm very supportive of vets, whether it's American or Canadian," Flanigan said. "What they go through ... I think they need to be respected."

Service held among tomb

This was the first year the ceremony was held since the interred remains of Newfoundland's Unknown Soldier were repatriated from France earlier this year and entombed in St. John's on Memorial Day. Grandy noted the Unknown Soldier's presence amplified the responsibility of the living to remember the dead.

"We carry the torch now," he said. "We remember the costs of war and the costs of freedom and democracy."

Some 820 Newfoundlanders who fought in the First World War are buried somewhere in Europe and have no known grave. The Unknown Soldier's remains represent all who died in the First World War.

Legionnaire and Navy veteran Frank Sullivan helped champion the repatriation of the soldier's remains. Sullivan said this year's ceremony in particular was emotional for all involved.

"Finally we have one of our fallen, representing all of our fallen," Sullivan said. 

"Today we celebrate the life of all our Newfoundlanders, wherever they may be."

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