Remembrance Day 2023

Schools across WSD held advance Remembrance Day services on Friday, November 10, honouring the sacrifices of military personnel to ensure the rights and freedoms Canadians treasure today.

At Lord Nelson School, the students gathered in the gymnasium for a sombre ceremony honouring those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and learning about local heroes including Sergeant Tommy Prince.

On November 8, National Indigenous Veterans Day, Technical Vocational High School teacher Sandra Neufeld brought her students to Brookside Cemetery for a morning of reflection and learning. Brookside's Field of Honour is the largest and oldest military interment site in Canada. Following the experience, we sat down with Neufeld and asked questions about the importance of the day, read her responses below:

If students take away just one message from their experience at Brookside, what would you want it to be? 

What I hope for them is that they develop a real appreciation of the fact that many of the men and women who lost their lives defending this country were only a couple of years older than the students themselves when they left their families and went across the world to fight for our freedoms. I hope they will ALWAYS spend some time thinking about this on Remembrance Day, and that they will each do their part to make sure this is the kind of Canada they gave everything they had for, including their young lives.

Why is it important for schools to actively participate and observe Remembrance Day?

We lose more and more veterans every year. Those of WWI are long gone, and any who fought in WWII are between the ages of 97 and 103. As we lose them, we lose our last ties to the people who experienced these events directly, who were there and saw what actually happened. People have a tendency to miss the significance of events they may feel so far removed from. Remembrance Day is the day we have been afforded to teach and learn about the significance of these events, to learn from them, and to spend a few very well-deserved minutes or hours remembering these brave souls. If you are a student of Winnipeg School Division, you need only look upon the memorial walls of Daniel MacIntyre, Gordon Bell, Kelvin, Isaac Brock, General Wolfe, and others to see rows and rows of portraits and names of the students who once learned in the schools they do now. This is who we remember. 

Why was it important to bring your students to Brookside cemetery?  

We have a unique opportunity in Winnipeg, as Brookside is an especially significant cemetery, and it is practically down the street from Tec Voc. In fact, just a few days ago, it was designated a National Historic Site. With Remembrance Day fast approaching and a desire to help my students appreciate the importance and meaning of this day, I thought Brookside would be the place to do that with its over 11,000 war veterans and war dead (and the oldest and largest Field of Honour in Canada), Canada's first Silver Cross Mother (who sent 10 sons off to WWI and had only five return), and Harry Colebourn, the Canadian soldier who adopted the bear who inspired a favourite of kids around the world, the story of Winnie the Pooh. 

Clifton School students were also at Brookside Cemetery on November 8 to participate in No Stone Left Alone with Manitoba organizer, Peter Martin. During the ceremony, students placed a poppy on the headstones of soldiers to signify respect and gratitude for fallen military veterans, while honouring living veterans, serving members and their families. On November 10, following the school's Remembrance Day assembly, students and staff walked to the corner of Valour Road and Sargent Avenue, the site of a memorial statue honouring three Canadian war heroes.  Cpl. Leo Clarke, Sgt. Maj. Frederick William Hall and Lt. Robert Shankland all lived on the 700 block of Pine Street. The street was renamed Valour Road in 1925 to recognize the three soldiers, all Victoria Cross recipients, who showed great bravery during the First World War. 

École Lansdowne's Remembrance Day ceremony, orchestrated by the Grade 6 classrooms, was a touching tribute that combined artistic expression, musical prowess, and a powerful message of remembrance. The ceremony unfolded with a message of remembrance, emphasizing showing kindness to others as a way of honouring the sacrifices of those who fought for our freedom, while creating a better world for ourselves and future generations. Stunning pieces of artwork served as visual tribute, songs with the theme of gratitude and unity were shared and the ceremony closed with a student playing the trumpet for a portion of the last post.  

Lest we forget.