Remembrance Week Speech

November 11, 2007

Thank you.

Distinguished Veterans, Youth, ladies and gentlemen,

Ad the Member of Parliament for Leeds-Grenville I am very honoured to participate in this special Veterans’ Week event.

Today we honour a very unique group of people.  Veterans.  Men and women who served their nation valiantly in times of war and in times of peace.

On this occasion, we also honour those who continue to serve our country in Afghanistan and other areas of conflict. 

These men and women uphold a noble Canadian tradition by taking an active role in bringing stability and peace to parts of the world that have seen turmoil and upheaval.
   
We also honor heroes of past conflicts.

This year, for example, we marked the 65th Anniversary of the Dieppe Raid and the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele. 

We witnessed the passing of two of our country’s last known First World War Veterans. 

And in April, thousands of Canadians from coast to coast watched ceremonies in France commemorating the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the dedication of the restored Canadian National Vimy Memorial.

At that ceremony we saw something amazing.  Something that touched the hearts of everyone in attendance and watching on television.  We saw the promise of the future. 

Clare Baxter, Director of the Forum for Young Canadians, was there that day and described it best:

“The ceremony began with the arrival of 5,000 youth representing [Vimy’s] fallen soldiers,” she said.  “I will never forget the sight of all those wonderful young people marching in from around the bend...cheering and waving thousands of small Canadian flags. 

“Welcomed as “the inheritors of freedom”, the cheers grew louder and louder as the students hoisted themselves on each others’ shoulders and sang O Canada.  It was in that moment that the torch was truly passed on to the young people of Canada.”

This year, all Canadians are urged to take an active role in remembrance. 

I think you will agree that in that single moment, the 5,000 young Canadians standing on the grassy slopes of Vimy Ridge answered that call to action.  And so can each of you.

Ladies and gentlemen, we do not need to travel to Europe or even to the National War Memorial in Ottawa to be part of this movement.  We don’t even have to leave our own communities.  We simply have to be willing to take an active role in remembrance. 

We must commemorate the contributions of our Veterans, honour the memory of those who did not make it home, and support those who continue to serve.

That is what we are doing here today. 

Our Veterans do it each time they share a story with a young person.  Our teachers do it every day as they explore our country’s history with their students. And you and I do it through the simplest of acts—a word...a conversation...a pause for reflection.

But there is more to be done. 

Remembrance should not be confined to a single week each year. 
As parents, educators, mentors, and community members, we must be willing to take an active role. 

We must ensure that our Veterans and the courageous men and women who continue to serve today are not forgotten.

For we are the future they fought for and, as Canadians, we cherish the values that they are still fighting for in many parts of the world. 

We owe it to our future to remember.

Lest We Forget.