After seeing the last two Remembrance Day services in Moose Jaw forced into a lower-key event due to the pandemic, it was finally all systems go for the Royal Canadian Legion Moose Jaw Branch 59 on Friday morning.
And it’s more than safe to say it was nice to be back for organizers of the annual gathering of military personnel past and present and their thousands of supporters in the community.
Close to 2,000 people took part in the Remembrance Day service Friday at the Moose Jaw Events Centre, marking the first full and live event of its kind since 2019.
“I think it's great to be back,” said Moose Jaw Legion president Roy LaBuick shortly after the hour-long ceremony came to a close. “The last two years have been very small services, for obvious reasons, and it was just so much fun to know back in the summer that we were going to be doing one of these again. We’ve been planning this basically since August, and it’s been great to once again see all the support from the community.”
Remembrance Day in 2020 and 2021 featured a gathering of only a couple dozen or so dignitaries taking part in the service, which was live-streamed on social media. Fast forward to Nov. 11, where folks braved the cold weather to once again gather in support of those who gave their lives and those who continue to fight for the freedom we have today.
“It was nice to see a lot of people in the stands, and especially to see the veterans who came out when they were asked to stand,” LaBuick said. “That’s what this is all about, supporting our veterans through events like this and things like the poppy fund, where all funds raised go back to support veterans here in the local area. It’s something we want to continue for a long time to come.”
The event was the 104th annual Remembrance Day service in Moose Jaw, meaning that putting together the ceremony was essentially like getting back on a bike even after the time away.
“We kind of were laughing at ourselves a little bit last night; we were in here setting up and we had photos from two years ago, and it was like ‘is that how we did that?’” LaBuick said. “We had to knock a little rust off, but everything went very well and you could tell we’ve ridden this bike before… there were a lot of volunteers who helped out, some new people who stepped up, and my hats off to the Moose Jaw Events Centre for everything they did, too. It had been two years, but everything came together really nicely.”
Of course, with all the positivity of being back in a full-on way, the reason for Remembrance Day is a sombre one. It hit home even harder in the lead-up to Nov. 11 when Herbert, Sask.’s Joseph Hildebrand was killed fighting in Ukraine only a few days before Friday’s events.
“A lot of us will never know what it’s like to wear the uniform of our country in a situation like that,” LaBuick said. “We really need to be aware of what our veterans are out there doing on a regular basis, and it’s like we’ve said in the Legion for a long time, a veteran as a veteran, whether they were stationed here in Canada and served here or whether they were overseas in peacekeeping missions or in combat. They’ve done a lot for us and the life we have today, and it’s important we remember them.”
The Moose Jaw Remembrance Day service was much the same as pre-pandemic years.
Rev. Doug Shephard conducted the service, with trumpeter Rick Elmer playing the Last Post and Rouse alongside piper Michelle Gallagher playing the Lament.
The event concluded with the laying of wreaths by dignitaries from local military, police and civic organizations.
LaBuick hopes folks will continue to remember and support local veterans even after the conclusion of Friday’s ceremonies -- something the Legion will strive to remain a part of as much as possible.
“Sometimes people think they have to be a Legion member to reach out for help from us, but that’s not the case; we’re here to help every veteran,” LaBuick said. “It can be something as small as filling out paperwork, we have a service officer here in Moose Jaw and they’re here to help with that. If we hear of a homeless veteran, we’ll help find them a place to live. We have a good group of people here and in our regional offices and we’re always here to help veterans in need.”
