Youth attendance inspires at poppy ceremony
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As sunlight came over the cenotaph in the Brandon Municipal Cemetery, around a thousand people stood shoulder to shoulder watching as wreaths and poppies were laid to honour the sacrifices made by Canadian veterans.
The 13th annual No Stone Left Alone ceremony brought students, dignitaries and Canadian Armed Forces members together on a brisk Friday morning to pay respect to the war veterans who sacrificed their lives in service.
Around 900 students from five schools — École Harrison, St. Augustine School, Riverheights School, École O’Kelly School, École La Source and Western Canada Hockey Academy — strove to leave no stone alone by placing a poppy on the roughly 1,700 headstones in the veterans’ section of the cemetery.
Ariel, a Grade 5 École Harrison student, takes a moment to read the inscription on a military headstone before placing her poppy following the No Stone Left Alone ceremony at the Brandon Municipal Cemetery on Friday morning. (Photos by Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)
Manitoba’s lieutenant-governor made the trip west for the service and expressed appreciation toward the students for attending and participating.
“I’m so proud to see the very young people standing so well to honour this ceremony,” Lt.-Gov. Anita Neville said during the ceremony.
“I must say I’m getting great pleasure in watching the young people and their participation. It’s not easy to stand here when they’re not quite sure what they’re here for,” she said.
Neville also recognized the Royal Canadian Legion, which celebrated its 100th anniversary this year and donated 1,500 poppies for students to place after the ceremony.
No Stone Left Alone is national initiative that began in 2011 after Maureen Bianchini Purvis, daughter of a Second World War veteran, was asked by her youngest daughter why all veterans’ headstones don’t have a poppy.
Hundreds of Brandon students joined soldiers from CFB Shilo, dignitaries and members of the Royal Canadian Legion to honour the fallen during the No Stone Left Alone ceremony at the Brandon Municipal Cemetery on Friday morning.
The question sparked Purvis to start the No Stone Left Alone mission that honours all Canadian veterans, while engaging students and Canadian youth.
During the service, small groups of students from the various schools recited Remembrance Day poems, sang songs and told stories in English and French.
In the spirit of carrying traditions forward, the base commander at CFB Shilo called the students’ displays “inspiring.”
“What could be more inspiring than what we just saw? Young Canadians contributing and participating in an act of remembrance,” said commanding officer Lt.-Col. Jack Nguyen.
“What gives me the greatest hope is seeing you all, the students,” Nguyen said.
“The simple act of placing a poppy on a headstone may seem small, but it carries enormous meaning. It connects young Canadians with those who came before them,” he said.
The sentiment of connecting youth to the people of the past echoed throughout the ceremony as organizer Ryan Lawson urged students to continue the tradition.
“Please remember, you guys are the generation that we’re entrusting to keep remembering now and into the future,” Lawson said.
“Don’t let their sacrifices be forgotten, and let’s make sure no stone is left alone.”
» rgerrard@brandonsun.com
Students walk past a pair of military headstones as they get ready to place poppies following the No Stone Left Alone ceremony on Friday morning.
St. Augustine School Grade 2 teacher Crystal Irwin hands out poppies to her students to place on military graves.
CFB Shilo base commander Lt.-Col. Jack Nguyen lays a wreath of remembrance at the foot of the Brandon Cenotaph during Friday’s ceremony.
Three members of Brandon’s Navy League Cadet Corp stand in full uniform during the ceremony.
Members of the Royal Canadian Legion stand at attention behind a table of poppy-laden wreaths.