As individuals laid poppies on the cenotaph in Saint Andrews town square, others gathered in the All-Saints Anglican Church for Remembrance Day – a small-town ceremony some have been celebrating for decades.
“Ever since I was a child that can remember things, I went down to the cenotaph in Saint Andrews every year, whatever weather, rain, snow, sleet, hail, cold, everything, because my father was in the Second World War,” said Jane Lauzier, who is a local resident.
Lauzier said that her father used to play the trumpet, performing The Last Post.
“[The Last Post] brings tears to my eyes when I hear it because I remember him down at our cenotaph in the market square,” said Lauzier.
Her father was one of the few who returned home to his family.
“Many of his friends around him passed away,” said Lauzier.
The war changed her father’s life – a bomb blew out his eardrums – and he injured his leg, requiring a lengthy hospital stay in the U.K. It was something, she said, that ended his hopes of being in the National Hockey League.
Acting Mayor of the Town of Saint Andrews Kate Akagi said Remembrance Day means remembering those who fought for freedom. This is her first Remembrance Day as acting mayor of the town.
“The right to live freely without prejudice,” said Akagi.
Akagi’s father, Motosaku “Motorcycle Charlie” Charles Joseph, was a veteran of the Second World War.
“He was never supposed to go into the war, never supposed to go overseas, and both things he did,” said Akagi.
He was a mechanic and a batman who helped serve military officers in World War II, according to Akagi.
Teaching the next generation about Remembrance Day is important, according to Amanda Bergantini, a member of the Akagi family.
“It feels good because you get to remember a bunch of people who sacrificed their lives for other people’s lives and should bring peace to the world,” said Bergatini’s daughter, Charlie Torchia, who laid a wreath during the ceremony.
There were 89 wreaths laid in memory of those who’d fallen and who have and continue to serve Canada, including two by 100-year-old Herb McGee – a veteran of World War II who served as a tail gunner in bomber command, flying over 40 missions over France and Germany.
