Nanaimo reflects, remembers 100 years after First World War ended

On Nov. 11, 1918 the armistice that ended the First World War was signed.

Exactly 100 years later, thousands of people marked the occasion by attending a Remembrance Day ceremony and parade at the Dallas Square Park cenotaph in downtown Nanaimo.

The ceremony, led by Coun. Ian Thorpe, featured gun salutes, prayers, music by the Nanaimo Concert Band and a moment of silence at 11 a.m. Members from the Royal Canadian Legion, American Legion, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, St. Johns Ambulance and the Nanaimo Scottish Pipes and Drums were also in attendance.

During the ceremony, the crowd sang Happy Birthday to Victor Osborne, who was born on Nov. 11, 1918 and was attending the event. Osborne, a Second World War veteran, later laid a wreath at the cenotaph.

Archdeacon Brian Evans led two prayers during Sunday’s ceremony. He told the crowd it was important to not just remember those who died, but those who survived.

“As we remember those who paid the supreme sacrifice. We also remember those for whom the wars have followed to many home, haunting their dreams and draining joy from their waking hours,” he said. “We may call it nerves or fatigue or shell shock, but we now know it as something even more, post traumatic stress disorder … they try to forget and we stand along side knowing that they remember and we too must remember with them.”

PHOTOS: #Nanaimo marks Remembrance Day, 100 years since WW1 at ceremony in the city's downtown. pic.twitter.com/Adem9WJafM

— Nicholas M Pescod (@npescod) November 11, 2018

Over 650,000 men and women from Canada and Newfoundland served in the First World War, which lasted from 1914 and 1918. According to Veteran Affairs Canada, 66,000 people from Canada and Newfoundland died in the war while 127,000 were injured. The First World War ended after Germany and the Allied Forces signed an armistice on Nov. 11, 1918.

Evans touched on the Vimy Ridge Monument in France, which honours the Battle of Vimy Ridge in the First World War.

“Across the Atlantic stands a towering memorial called Vimy, on a pocked marked patch of Canadian soil in France,” he said. “Justifiably in modest in scale, but justifiably a symbol for all of us to remember in our lives.”

More than 3,500 Canadians were killed during the Battle of Vimy Ridge and roughly 7,000 were wounded according to Veterans Affairs.

“We remember with pride and gratitude all those who fought on the land, the sea and the skies … and we pray that the memory of their self-giving may inspire us to invest our energy and our substance in building a world where the angel dove of peace may fly freely and safely,” Evans said.

Speaking to the News Bulletin afterwards, Bill Brayshaw, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 10 past-president and ceremony organizer, called Sunday’s event a “wonderful day” and was thrilled that Osborne was able to attend. He said it also meant a lot to him to see so many young people attend Sunday’s ceremony and that the narrative that the younger generations are losing interest in Remembrance Day, isn’t accurate.

“Everybody keeps saying the younger people are losing interest more and more, but I find more and more young people coming [to the ceremony] every year,” Brayshaw said.

VICTOR OSBORNE (left): Places a wreath at the Nanaimo cenotaph. Osborne is a WW2 vet who celebrated his 100th birthday today. He was born on Nov. 11 1918. The crowd sang happy birthday to him. #LestWeForget #RemembranceDay #ArmisticeDay #WWI100 pic.twitter.com/uf8E9EllJc

— Nicholas M Pescod (@npescod) November 12, 2018