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Barry's
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Devolin Column
October 23, 2009
Celebrating Veterans’ Week
From November 5th to 11th, Canadians will join together to celebrate Veterans' Week. During this week, hundreds of commemorative ceremonies and events will take place across the country to honour the sacrifices of our Veterans and those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
This year, we commemorate the 65th anniversaries of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy, the Liberation of Belgium and the Italian Campaign.
Our Veterans are ordinary men and women who did extraordinary things to protect our freedom and build a safer world to live in. They have served during war, military conflict and peace.
To this day, our brave men and women of the Canadian Forces are upholding this noble tradition at home and abroad. Their courage, skill and professionalism, which they display every day during our mission in Afghanistan, are an inspiration to us all.
On November 11th, I plan to remember and honour our veterans by not only wearing a poppy above my heart but laying a wreath on behalf of the Government of Canada at the Remembrance Day ceremony in Sunderland. Over the past five years, I have attended services in Haliburton, Lindsay, Beaverton, Kinmount and Millbrook.
I recognize that not everyone can attend a Remembrance Day ceremony, or travel to one of the countless places across our country and around the world that speak to us of our proud military tradition. But no matter where we are, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we can pause and reflect on the price paid for the peace and prosperity we enjoy today.
By taking a moment on November 11th, it is the one way we can all repay the enormous debt we owe those who fought and died for Canada, the veterans who are still with us, and those who continue to serve so heroically today.
Their effort and sacrifice has helped to shape the future of our country, and their service is a point of national pride. Lest we forget.
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