The past 96 years had taken their toll on the Beverly Cenotaph. The base was crumbling and plaques bearing the names of fallen soldiers were coming off.
But after some restoration, Alberta’s oldest cenotaph will be ship-shape for one of Edmonton’s largest outdoor Remembrance Day ceremonies, drawing 4,500 to 5,000 people a year.
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The restoration was a 10-year effort of the Beverly Cenotaph Memorial Committee.
“It took us that long — 2006 to now — to have enough funds to get it done, and we’re proud of it,” says Joe Luce, the chairman.
“So we’re replacing the base, we’re raising it up, we’re taking out all the brush that was hiding this area — basically no one knew this was sitting here because it was hiding behind the brush. So, we’re making it open, more like a town centre.”
More lighting is being added to the park. And plaques on the cenotaph are being updated to reflect Canada’s involvement in other missions since World War II, and the Korean War.
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The cenotaph was erected in 1920 by soldiers from the small mining town of Beverly — now an Edmonton neighbourhood — who had returned from World War I. They created the Beverly Veterans’ Association and one of their first orders of business was a memorial for their fallen brothers.
Two lots of land were donated to the association by Thomas R. Dando and a memorial fund was created to raise money for the project. The memorial park and cenotaph officially opened Oct. 17, 1920, near 40th Street and 118th Avenue in northeast Edmonton.
The latest restoration was funded by local businesses and grants, Luce says.
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“The businesses on the Beverly Business Association end have been phenomenal; they’re the ones that actually helped our committee.
“One of our major contributors was the Rotary Club of North East Edmonton. They’ve been great to us; they gave about $150,000. That put us right to the top where we needed to be.”
In the spring, the committee will hold a re-dedication ceremony at the site.
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“Anytime this has been worked on, the cenotaph, they always did a re-dedication of it. This will be the third one.”
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