For two minutes, the crowd at a Lethbridge District and Exhibition Remembrance Day ceremony fell silent on Friday, honouring those who have fought in the Canadian military and those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“It’s always important to remember our veterans who have passed away fighting in the world wars and the Korean conflict,” said Mike Duffy, a retired member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
“We have a democracy here — and in the western hemisphere — because of them, and we should recognize the sacrifices they made in order for us to live in this manner.”
Duffy served nearly 30 years in the RCMP. He said he has firsthand experience of seeing the mental impact of war.
“My grandfathers fought in World War One, my uncles in World War Two. They survived the wars, but they came home damaged,” he said. “So remember the efforts and sacrifices they made for my family.”
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According to the 2021 Federal Census, more than 500,000 Canadians were either counted as veterans or currently serving in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Lt. Peter Rosendal is one of them.
“We’re starting to lose a lot of our actual service members that have been in WW1 or WW2,” Rosendal said.
“We commemorate those people who have sacrificed their time away from family and then also sacrificed their lives.”
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