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You gave your today for our tomorrow


Starbug

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It should be against the law not too...

That might defeat the purpose.

At one job (delivering pizzas) I can't wear it, just in case it falls out in someone's food, so I keep it up in my visor.

Both of my grandfathers fought and survived the war. I am one of the lucky ones.

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My Grandpa didn't die from the war, but the injuries he suffered plagued him throughout his life. However, the war was his only opportunity for survival. His mother had mental issues, and his dad was a drunk. He had nothing except for an opportunity. He joined at a very young age. One day while in the barracks a sergeant yelled at him because he had facial hair. Why haven't you shaved! he yelled. My grandpa responded that he didn't know how. A teenager so young he hadn't learned to shave was risking his lilfe for his country. He flew in th bomber airplanes and had gas dropped over him. He returned to Canada a hero, and married my grandmother. He wanted to attend law school but he still didn't have the money. My grandma offered to work but during that time my grandfather would not allow that.

Instead, he worked his way up starting as a insurance claims manager. He would move to Prince George from Vancouver and became involved in politics. He would go on to become an MP, representing Prince George-Bulkey valley, one of the largest geographic constituencys in the country. He served from 1979-1988, when he retired from politics.

My Grandpa ensured that his grandchildren would have the opportunities he didn't have as a 20 year old man. He set up an education trust fund for all his grandchildren to ensure that they could afford a university education.

Other reasons aside, my Grandpa has been a major influence on my decision to go to law school. He has given me so many opportunities that he never got to experience at my age. For me to waste these opportunities because of laziness is the worst thing I could possibly do. My grandpa is my biggest motivator. May he rest in peace.

Please share your stories as well so that the lives of the men and women who served our country live on.

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There is already a thread, and frankly, its way better than this one: http://forum.canucks.com/index.php?showtopic=214673

Aww thanks!

Please share your stories as well so that the lives of the men and women who served our country live on.

I have a different sort of story. I have family currently serving in the military, but none who served during the world wars (that I'm aware of). But my grandmother's family played a huge role in the Dutch Resistance.

General Sir John Winthrop Hackett might well owe his life to my great great aunts - they took him in and nursed him back to health over a period of 4-5 months. He was smuggled out of a hospital in German territory by my great uncle ('Piet van Arnhem' in the WWII section of this page) and to the home of the de Nooijj sisters. My grandmother stayed in that house for a short while, though never actually met this man as she was quite young and he was a HUGE security risk to the family. Being caught harboring low-rank 'underdivers' (ie jews) would lead to one's house being blown up. Harboring a British officer was grounds for death. Yet they cared for him anyway, despite the fact that their house backed onto the German police headquarters in Ede. Although he had contact with Allied Forces special agents during his recovery period, it was the Dutch underground that got him out of Holland and back into Allied hands. Hackett has written a memoir, I was a Stranger, on this particular experience and I finally got hold of a copy to read a few months ago. It was a fantastic read, and really interesting to see some of what the Dutch Resistance movement was able to accomplish.

One of my great uncles earned a medal for his part in the resistance. Unfortunately, he had also been captured during the war, and tortured in an effort to gain information about the resistance; he was never the same person after he returned from that. I never met him, only his widow, but I was told that in later years "his mind had started to go." From what I gathered, most of the family considered it a blessing in disguise when he passed because it meant he could finally be at peace.

Setting aside time in my trip to see Vimy Ridge and Ypres was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I only had 4 months in Europe, 3 of those working, but once I found out I was going, Vimy Ridge was the first place I put on my list of places to see, and I'd go back in a heartbeat. The monument and surrounding park is amazing, and it's impossible to not be affected by it. I'll post more photos in a bit, once I find the little brochure that's got some info I want on it.

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Thank you.

As a current serving member and somebody who is going to afghanistan, stuff like this makes my job worth while, I feel proud being able to serve such a great country.

Lest we Forget.

good luck and come back safe!

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It should be against the law not too...

Great thread, Lest We Forget.

Completely disagree with that law angle.

I don't feel I should have to display my respect. I'm of the attitude where I can display my appreciation my own way, in my own thoughts. I don't agree with the 'honour our veterans in a matter we tell you because we say so' attitude that such a law would enforce.

For example, I was on the Chilliwack Bruins forum the other day. I said I didn't like how the shoulder patch for the Nov. 11th game looked on a white jersey. I got told basically that I should love it because it signifies Rememberance Day. Sorry, where's the logic in that? Isn't that kind of going AGAINST the freedom that these soldiers put their lives on the line for? If I don't think something looks aesthetically pleasing, no matter what it signifies, I shouldn't have to pretend to think it's beautiful.

Some people take this day too seriously and think that if someone's not done to the tits in terms of showing respect and support, that they're not worthy of being Canadian.

For the record, I'm not trashing Rememberance Day, nor am I not trashing the soldiers and the cause they risked their lives for. I just don't agree with the expectations that is put on me to follow these procedures, show off that I respect them, etc. I just feel that, in Canada, a free nation, I should be able to thank the soldiers myself, in whatever manner I feel without having to put up with other peoples' b/s that I should follow such protocol like wearing a poppy or having to like a certain shoulder patch.

I will be paying my respects to those who have served, who are served, who will be serving for our country - and that's MY choice. I just don't think it should be enforced on a person

[/rant]

Edited by !Mads!
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My Grandpa didn't die from the war, but the injuries he suffered plagued him throughout his life. However, the war was his only opportunity for survival. His mother had mental issues, and his dad was a drunk. He had nothing except for an opportunity. He joined at a very young age. One day while in the barracks a sergeant yelled at him because he had facial hair. Why haven't you shaved! he yelled. My grandpa responded that he didn't know how. A teenager so young he hadn't learned to shave was risking his lilfe for his country. He flew in th bomber airplanes and had gas dropped over him. He returned to Canada a hero, and married my grandmother. He wanted to attend law school but he still didn't have the money. My grandma offered to work but during that time my grandfather would not allow that.

Instead, he worked his way up starting as a insurance claims manager. He would move to Prince George from Vancouver and became involved in politics. He would go on to become an MP, representing Prince George-Bulkey valley, one of the largest geographic constituencys in the country. He served from 1979-1988, when he retired from politics.

My Grandpa ensured that his grandchildren would have the opportunities he didn't have as a 20 year old man. He set up an education trust fund for all his grandchildren to ensure that they could afford a university education.

Other reasons aside, my Grandpa has been a major influence on my decision to go to law school. He has given me so many opportunities that he never got to experience at my age. For me to waste these opportunities because of laziness is the worst thing I could possibly do. My grandpa is my biggest motivator. May he rest in peace.

Please share your stories as well so that the lives of the men and women who served our country live on.

Aww thanks!

Not a problem, its true.

Keep the personal stories coming guys! They are great to read and remember.

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More photos, or in the case of a few in the first post, more explanations. Some of this is recycled from last year's Remembrance Day thread, with the photo links updated.

Vimy Ridge

Starting with the monument itself, designed by Canadian sculptor and architect Walter Seymour Allward:

Carved on the walls of the monument are the names of 11,285 Canadian soldiers who were killed in France and whose final resting place was then unknown. Standing on the monument’s wide stone terrace overlooking the broad fields and rolling hills of Northern France, one can see other places where Canadians fought and died. More than 7,000 are buried in 30 war cemeteries within a 20-kilometre radius of the Vimy Memorial. Altogether, more than 66,000 Canadian service personnel died in the First World War.

Designed by Canadian sculptor and architect Walter Seymour Allward, the monument took eleven years to build. It rests on a bed of 11,000 tonnes of concrete, reinforced with hundreds of tonnes of steel. The towering pylons and sculptured figures contain almost 6,000 tonnes of limestone brought to the site from an abandoned Roman quarry on the Adriatic Sea (in present day Croatia). The figures were carved where they now stand from huge blocks of this stone. A cloaked figure stands at the front, or east side, of the monument overlooking the Douai Plain. It was carved from a single, 30-tonne block and is the largest piece in the monument. This sorrowing figure of a woman represents Canada—a young nation mourning her dead. Below is a tomb, draped in laurel branches and bearing a helmet and sword.

more design info

They've been restoring the monument over the last few years, and I believe they went back to that same limestone quarry and opened up a new seam to get materials for the restoration - the plates containing names were removed from the monument and new ones were hand-carved.

The land the Vimy Ridge Memorial is on (monument, cemeteries, tunnels (closed when I was there), trenches, and interpretive centre) has been granted "freely, and for all time, to the Government of Canada the free use of the land exempt from all taxes":

Europe127.jpg

It's hard to get an idea for the size of the monument from photos, but it's huge; the 11 285 names on the monument are all inscribed on the base (the widest part) alone. I think the base was higher than I am tall (I'm 5'3"), or comparable in height.

Europe101.jpg

Europe102.jpg

Here's a close-up of the base of the monument

Europe124.jpg

Some of the names were difficult (emotionally) to read, in particular the areas where you'd see the same surname written 10, 12, or 16 times (Cameron, Campbell, David were common last names).

The back side of the monument is pictured in the above photos. The light made it difficult to get a good, detailed picture of the front, so here's a close-up look. The wreath is resting against a tomb of an unknown soldier.

Europe104.jpg

The sorrowful woman above the tomb is there to represent Canada, "a young nation mourning her dead." Here's a close-up of her, and also a bit of the view from the front side of the monument.

Europe113.jpg

The monument was built on Hill 145, the highest point in the 14km long Vimy Ridge. It was the last part of the ridge to fall. Despite the haze, you can get an idea of the view and why it was such a critical point in the front line.

This is a close-up of the top of one of the pylons:

Europe114.jpg

Each of the figures on the pylon has a specific purpose; more information on the symbolism can be found here.

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After going to the Vimy Ridge monument, I then visited the cemeteries and the trenches.

The first cemetery is where the visit really started to get emotional. There are 746 graves here, and many of them read simply "An unknown soldier of the Great War" and "Known unto God" (same as the tombstone at Essex Farms shown in the first post). Couple that with the names I read on the monument...I got teary-eyed.

Europe079.jpg

At the end of the cemetery:

Europe099.jpg

I was there 3 weeks after Remembrance Day, and the wreaths were still present. The poppy wreaths had hand-written notes in plastic bags (for preservation) and that is where I got the title for this thread: You gave your today for our tomorrow. Thank you. Reading that was when tears started to fall.

Europe085.jpg

Much of the grounds haven't been landscaped since the war, and the craters from artillery shelling are still very much visible:

Europe119.jpg

The trenches have been cleaned up and maintained over the years. It's amazing how beautiful they look now, given what they looked like during the war. The Canadian and German front lines were marked, and I'd had no idea just how close they were. I could have thrown a baseball between the two without any difficulty.

Europe110.jpg

The only indication of how the trenches once looked:

Europe125.jpg

Here are the nearby French and German cemeteries. The French and German soldiers were moved to large cemeteries, while British Commonwealth soldiers were buried in smaller cemeteries scattered all over the countryside.

French cemetery, 45 000 graves (right next to another British Commonwealth cemetery):

Europe089.jpg

German cemetery 50 000 graves:

Europe091.jpg

I saw these last two places because I got a ride back to town from a local man (retired, I think) who feels so strongly for what Canada did that he spends his days going by the Vimy Ridge train station (knows the schedules by heart, according to the girl working at the interpretive centre) and offering Canadian tourists a ride to the memorial. On the way back to town, he stopped to show me these two places.

So many travelers make use of the fact that Canadians are well-received in Europe but have no idea as to why that is so. It's because of what our nation accomplished in WWI and WWII. Sadly, I think they (Europeans) may have a better appreciation of that than many Canadian citizens do.

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