Lest We Forget

Canada's wreath lies among many others at the Menin Gate

As I did last year, I am letting the students' words tell the story of our visits to WWI sites in the Somme and Flanders. We spent four nights in Bruges during this trip, but during the day on November 9 and November 11, we travelled to famous WWI battlefields and memorials to honour the many who fought in the Great War. It was a very meaningful pilgrimage for all of us. As you read through this account, my comments are in italics, while the students' names are in parenthesis after their words.

It was to me a sort of direct way to thank my ancestors for their sacrifices, and truly made me proud of their efforts and of Canada’s efforts during both wars. (Taylor)

I felt sorrow while visiting the cemeteries, appreciation during the Remembrance Day ceremony, and excitement during the walk through the various trenches. (Alec)

Vimy Ridge Memorial

What struck me as we came closer to the memorial was how it stood entirely alone on this field, amplifying its presence. (Malcolm)

The monument is breathtaking.

I was gifted the honour of being able to present the wreath below the memorial. Telling my father this afterwards made him immensely proud and he was extremely happy I was able to do such a thing. (Jared) I was honoured by this request and proudly completed this task. (Raphael)

Our Department of Defence kids: Nicole, Connor, Jared and Raphael

It meant a lot to me when we sang "O Canada". I had a tear in my eye, feeling very close to my home country, and very proud of it as well. (Erin)

One of our beautiful wreaths. 

In learning of their determination and bravery, I gained an enormous amount of respect for the Canadian soldiers and for our country through our visit to Vimy (Adrienne)

Our wonderful guide, Raul, tells us about the battle and the monument.

While the memorial has a certain presence, there is no doubt that something devastating occurred there; even though it was a victory, many sacrifices were made to achieve that victory. My great grandfather was at Vimy Ridge as a soldier but only for a short time compared to my great grandmother, who was a nurse (Georgia)

The Mourning Women looks over the former battlefield.

I am happy to see the effort that the countries went through to gather so much information on the fallen to be able to honour their deaths properly. (Andie) 

Thousands of names are engraved on the stones.

An impactful part of my visit to Vimy Ridge was seeing thousands of names engraved on the memorial, including that of my great great uncle, P. B. Sheppard. (Taylor)

The restored trenches of Vimy.

Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial

I think it is so important that we continue to pay our respects to the fallen soldiers that fought for us. (Lauren)

The caribou looks toward the battlefield where so many of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment were slaughtered.

The Beaumont-Hamel Memorial was quite shocking because of how well the whole battlefield was kept; we could still see where the Germans were firing from and where more than 300 Newfoundland soldiers were massacred by German machine guns less than 200 metres away (Fred)

Note the shell holes on the battlefield at Beaumont-Hamel.

It was surprising to learn how close the distance between enemy trenches was, sometimes as close as fifty meters apart. (Alec)

The danger tree still stands at Beaumont-Hamel

Standing there for the very first time, I felt the ghosts of the war going on around me, the opposing forces just 100 meters away, and shells going off all around. As I stood there, the war became a reality. (Amy)

Passchendaele: On November 10, one of our students, Nicole, attended a special ceremony in Passchendaele, and asked if she could write about it in her reflection. It was a very important day for her and her family.

At the main square, there is a massive Canadian flag on a flag pole accompanied by the Belgian flag beside it. The last post was played and the Belgian Military soldiers lowered the flag. They then carefully folded the flag and handed it to my father, who was the commander of the representing Canadian Military soldiers. He then marched over to where my grandfather and I were standing in the square, handed him the flag, and saluted. (Nicole)

Nicole, her dad and grandfather

I will forever remember what a Belgian said to us, "Belgium would not be a nation if it weren't for you." (Nicole)

Ypres on Remembrance Day

The Menin Gate

Remembrance Day is a day of mourning but also a day of appreciation. (Laura)

One of the many marching bands in Ypres.

People of all nationalities stood in complete silence, bounded by a common history. (Grace)

Inside the Menin Gate at Ypres

While in Ypres, I was smiled at or stopped several times and asked where in Canada I was from, and it made me feel very proud of my home. (Lauren)

Proud Canadians and one American.

Through the many words that were spoken, I remember hearing “for your today, we gave our tomorrow.” (Jamie)

 On Remembrance Day we were not remembering death, but life (Kevin)

Dignitaries walk toward the Menin gate

The countless red flowers drifting through the air somehow touched me so deeply that I felt my heart skip a beat. (Amy)

Flowers falling through the gate as seen on the large screen in the main square.

Essex Farm Cemetery

Memorial at Essex Farm

I will remember visiting Essex Farm Cemetery, because for me, it gave me visual and emotional context to "In Flanders Fields". There, a hundred years ago, the poem was written, while the war persisted. The poem I know so well was written on the very ground I was standing on, and written about the men at whose graves I was standing. (Emma)

The grave of a 15 year-old soldier at Essex Farm.

It was amazing to see the graves in which bodies were not identified, and the ones that were linked together. This means that when the soldiers died, they died in the same explosion, and their body parts could not be distinguished from one another. (Alex)

St. Julian Memorial at Vancouver Corner

This monument is also known as Vancouver Corner

I felt especially patriotic singing "O Canada" at Vancouver Corner, on foreign soil. (Lucia)

Here we are singing "O Canada".

As a school, we placed down our wreath to honour the soldiers and sang "O Canada" in both French and English.  While singing the anthem I truly felt proud to be a Canadian knowing the capabilities of our people.  (Brandon)

Ellis, Grace, Kieran, Laura and Jennie (our foyer council) laid a wreath.

The face of the "brooding soldier" at Vancouver Corner.

Tyne Cot Cemetery

This graveyard is for Commonwealth soldiers.

Seeing Tyne Cot Cemetery also resonates with me on a more personal level as my Great Grandfather served in WWI for Scotland. (Mara)

There are close to 11 000 graves in this cemetery.

This sacrifice was seen by the number of white crosses marking the graves of the fallen that lined the Tyne Cot Cemetery. (Megan)

Gate at Tyne Cot

Many of these soldiers died between 18 to 21 years old, not much older than me. Each one of their gravestones represents a family who lost a son, a brother, a father or a friend. (Laura)

Names of unidentified soldiers are engraved on the wall.

The weight comes from the realization that those who sacrificed themselves for the freedom we get to take for granted in present time fell among comrades in the mass grave known as the battlefield. (Will)

Perspective of the cemetery

I was terrified by the amount of graves that were dedicated to men that weren't even identified, which we were told was about 70% of the cemetery (Fred)

A Canadian grave next to a Scottish one.

Quotations on the graves varied from things like, "We will meet again in Heaven", "He died to save his friends", and "Je t'aime". (Emmy)

The stark beauty of Tyne Cot Cemetery contrasts with the horrors that occurred there.

Every soldier fought for his country when the call of duty came, but they fought for a common cause, each grave having a different mark than the one by its side. (Jeremy)

Hill 62

This site is a museum. Inside the building is a great deal of military paraphernalia, while outside are perfectly preserved trenches, including a tunnel which I walked through. It was completely dark and very wet underfoot. 

Inside the museum

They also had an original tunnel that led into the trenches.  This tunnel was really long, dark and muddy which gave me a real feeling of what the soldiers had to go through in midst of a battle. (Brandon)

In the trenches at Hill 62

It goes to show that the living conditions of the soldiers were hardly living conditions at all. The thick muck and lightless tunnels reminded me of a certain Hell. (Adrienne)

Fred and Jennie in an authentic trench

While I was wandering around the old trenches in the mud I felt grateful for the experience, but I also felt honoured to be standing in the same place as so many brave men had stood. (Connor)

This trench has been left unaltered for 100 years.

Seeing these places and learning about the history opens our eyes to the reality of the times and allows for awareness, understanding, gratitude, and most importantly respect and remembrance for those that have fallen so that we can lead the lives that we lead today.(Sasha)

Our group at Vimy

Most importantly, this trip made me even more grateful for what they sacrificed in order to give us what we have today. Lest we forget. (Raphael)