Hundreds in a hockey arena stood for a moment of silence before Rev. Mokwadi Basele led them in prayer.
His thoughts were of the four soldiers killed more than three weeks ago in a wind-propelled grass fire at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright.
“God, we come closer to home, we come to Wainwright, as we remember the tragedy that befell this small town,” said the minister with Grace United Church at Wednesday’s Remembrance Day service in the town southeast of Edmonton.
The minister also prayed for a quick recovery for the many others still in hospital with severe burns.
“We lift up those who were injured and all who continue to heal in hospitals and at home, as well as comrades from the base and friends who live with shock and grief.”
The four who died were honoured at ceremonies across Alberta and Canada.
Pte. Shaun Farrell, 23, of Prince Albert, Sask.; Pte. Aidan Goulding, 23, of North Vancouver, B.C.; and Pte. Hayden Lykkemark, 19, of Langley, B.C.; and Sgt. Morgan Wong, 26, of Edmonton died in the Oct. 17 blaze.
A few blocks from the Peace Memorial Multiplex, some left flowers and wreaths at the base of a historic, century-old fieldstone tower commemorating Canadians who died in the First and Second World Wars.
“We come every year,” said Wainwright resident Reimer Nielsen.
“This (Remembrance Day) is a little more sombre and more important to be here for the four.”
Veteran Sean Hansen said Remembrance Day is always special in the town, but it feels different this year because of the fire.
“Unfortunately, some paid with their lives and some are horribly scarred,” he said.
About 84 soldiers with the Charlie Company unit of the 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry were taking part in attack training on Oct. 17, when a windstorm shot flames from a grass fire and onto the troops.
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Another 39 soldiers were injured and 21 are still recovering in hospital, as of Nov. 5.
“These young people literally ran into balls of fire to save their brothers and sisters in arms,” federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said after attending the Wainwright ceremony.
He represents the riding of Battle River-Crowfoot, which includes the base.
“We think of their mothers, their fathers, their sisters, their brothers, their friends, and there are dozens of others who recovering from the most horrendous wounds imaginable,” he said.
“Third-degree burns on 80 to 90 per cent of their bodies. We reflect on the courage of the people on that day.”
Northwest of Edmonton, at least 2,000 lined a road leading to the St. Albert Cenotaph, a war memorial for local soldiers who died in combat.
Roughly 300 members of the same regiment caught in the Wainwright fire marched to the site.
Farrell’s family was also there, and they laid a wreath in his honour.
“We may not know much about the lives of the people who were recently killed or injured in Wainwright, yet each one of them lived and breathed among us,” Rev. Ken MacRae, a retired Armed Forces chaplain, told the crowd.
“They had or still have dreams of their own. They had or still have friends and family who love them.”
He said the names of the four killed in Wainwright are to be added to some cenotaphs and memorial sites across the country.
“God has not forgotten them, nor should any of us forget these individuals.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney, at a ceremony in Ottawa, honoured those in Wainwright.
He has called the deadly fire at the base one of the worst tragedies for the Armed Forces on Canadian soil during peacetime. Three investigations are looking into what happened.
Rabbi Idan Scher gave the benediction at the Ottawa service. He said Canadians united after the fire.
“Canadians lined up to donate blood, prepared meals for emergency crews, opened their homes and worked tirelessly to care for the injured,” Scher said.
“At a time when our world feels increasingly divided, these Canadians reminded us of what truly matters. They did not ask what their neighbours believed, where they came from, or whether they saw the world the same way.
“They simply asked, ‘How can I help?'”
— With files from The Canadian Press reporter Jack Farrell in St. Albert, Alta.
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