www.invermerevalleyecho.com A13The Valley Echo Wednesday, November 7, 2012

“LET PEACE BE THEIR MEMORIAL”The presidents and members of the

ROyAL CAnAdIAn LEgIOnBranch #71, Windermere District and Branch #199, Edgewater invite your participation in their joint services of Remembrance

Sunday, november 11, 2012In memory of more than 117,000 Fallen Comrades

Boer War 1899-1902WWI 1914-1918 • WWII 1939-1945

Korea 1950-1953Afghanistan • Peacekeepers

InvERMERE EdgEwATER10:30 a.m. Parade forms outside Legion 3.30 p.m.10:35 a.m. Parade moves to Cenotaph Park 3:45 p.m.11:30 a.m. Parade leaves Cenotaph Park 4:30 p.m.11:35 a.m. Parade dismisses at Legion 4:40 p.m.12 p.m. Reception at Legion 5:30 p.m.

Those wishing to pick up wreaths to be placed at the Cenotaph, please do so at the Legion:10 a.m. Invermere3:15 p.m. Edgewater

THE ROyAL CAnAdIAn LEgIOn wOuLd LIkE TO THAnk THE gEnERAL PuBLIC fOR THE gEnEROuS dOnATIOnS TO THE POPPy fund.

IN FLANDERS FIELDS

In Flanders � elds the poppies blowBetween the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the skyThe larks, still bravely singing, � yScarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days agoWe lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lieIn Flanders � elds.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:To you from failing hands we throwThe torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who dieWe shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders � elds.

John McCrae

Remembrance Day

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We often take for granted the very things that most deserve

our gratitude.

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Veteran, Remembrance, & Peace

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Praising what is lost makes the remembrance dear.

-William Shakespeare

At 0530 hours on the morning of 9 April 1917, the Battle of Vimy Ridge be-gan, marking an important milestone in our military history.

For the next few days, Canadian troops fought relentlessly, braving enemy forces, a heavily-forti� ed ridge and the weather. � is battle was signi� cant; not only was it a resounding success for Canada but, in the words of Brigadier-General A.E. Ross, it marked the “birth of a nation”.

No longer would Canada be over-shadowed by the military strength of her allies. � is battle had proven Cana-da’s ability as a formidable force in the theatre of war.

� e bravery, discipline and sacri� ce that Canadian troops displayed during those few days are now legendary. � e battle represented a memorable uni� cation of

our personnel resources as troops from all Canadian military divisions, from all parts of Canada and from all walks of life, joined to collectively overcome the powerful en-emy at considerable odds. Our troops united to defeat adversity and a military threat to the world.

Now, decades later, Canadians stand united in their Remembrance as they recognize and honour the sel� ess acts of our troops from all wars. We realize that it is because of our war veterans that we exist as a proud and free nation.

Today, when people from all parts of

Canada and from all walks of life join together in their pledge to never forget, they choose to display this collective reminiscence by wearing a Poppy.

� ey stand united as Canadians shar-ing a common history of sacri� ce and commitment.

Each November, Poppies blossom on the lapels and collars of over half of Canada’s entire population. Since 1921, the Poppy has stood as a symbol of Remembrance, our visual pledge to never forget all those Canadians who have fallen

in war and military operations. The Poppy also stands internationally as a “symbol of collective reminiscence”, as other countries have also adopted its image to honour those who have paid the ultimate sacrifi ce.

Celebrating the 'Birth of a Nation'Remembering the legendary veterans who fought for a free Canada

THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGIONSpecial to The Valley Echo

Echo � le photo

www.invermerevalleyecho.com A15The Valley Echo Wednesday, November 7, 2012

250-342-3004www.windermerevalleygolfcourse.com

Lest we forget.

“But the freedom that they fought for, and the country grand they wrought for, Is their monument to-day, and for aye.”

-Thomas Dunn English

250-342-9424141 Industrial Rd. No. 2

250-342-9268

“When our perils are past, shall our gratitude sleep?”

-George Canning

250-342-69089980 Arrow Rd, Invermere

Sunday November 11 only 12pm -5pm so our staff may participate in services.

Never forget.

250.342.9281 www.invermere.net

For World War II veteran Jim Ashworth, joining the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in 1941 was an obvious choice.

"Well, we were needed of course," said Ashworth. "I'd just � nished high school and was working up at the park, and all my friends joined, and we thought we better go and get this over with, so we joined up. � at was the general atmo-sphere anyway."

At the age of 20, Ashworth, a native of Cranbrook, would begin his training in Canada as a pilot in January before being shipped to England in Novem-ber of the same year.

Ashworth had never � own before joining the RCAF, but after spending a year in Eng-land, he was sent to Southeast Asia for the Burma Campaign, which was part of the Asia-Pa-ci� c War of WWII.

"I didn't really want to go that far, but you didn't have

much choice; they were short of pilots and you had to go," said Ashworth, who went on

to become a squadron leader. "Some of the decisions, you did what the higher authority told

you to do."He would end up � ying 90

hours during the Burma Cam-

paign before being sent back to Canada near the tail-end of 1944. Arriving back in Canada was a huge relief, as some of his strongest war memories were of the poor living condi-tions pilots would sometimes have to live with.

� e end of the war was "ex-hilarating," said Ashworth.

He then stayed on with the RCAF for a total of 26 years un-til retiring in 1966.

During that time Ashworth was also posted at a radar station in To� no on Vancouver Island as part of a distant early-warning system that saw radar stations all across the U.S. and Canada in case of a Soviet bomber attack during the Cold War.

After retiring from the RCAF, Ashworth moved back to the East Kootenay where he co-owned and operated the Hoo-doos Mountain Resort for a number of years.

He regularly takes part in Re-membrance Day ceremonies in the Columbia Valley and visits Windermere Elementa-ry School each year as part of their ceremonies.

"It really warms things up for everybody," Ashworth said. "� e teachers do a great job in giving the kids the word."

World War II veteran retired to Columbia ValleyCranbrook native joined Canadian air force at 20 years old

STEVE JESSELreporter@invermerevalleyecho.com

SUBMITTED PHOTOWWII veteran Jim Ashworth is seen here in this picture from 1956. The photo was taken in Saskatoon just prior to Ashworth taking a course in fl ying CF-100 Canuck jet interceptors and fi ghters that were used throughout the Cold War.

A16 www.invermerevalleyecho.com Wednesday, November 7, 2012 The Valley Echo

Invermere250-342-3050

“The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.”

- Thucydides

“Our hopes are high. Our faith in the people is great. Our courage is strong. And our dreams for this beautiful country will never die.”

-Pierre Trudeau

VALLEY ECHO

T he

In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

7th Avenue, Invermere • 250-342-4406

–akis“nuk First Nation Lower Kootenay St. Mary’s Tobacco Plains

Phone: 250-342-2175 www.kootenayinsurance.ca

We remember.

Canadian pens celebrated Flanders Field poem

Lieutenant-Colonel McCrae was born on November 30, 1872 in Guelph, On-tario. At age 14, he joined the High� eld Cadet Corps and, three years later, en-listed in the Militia � eld battery. While attending the University of Toronto Medical School, he was a member of the Queen’s Own Ri� es of Canada.

With Britain declaring war on Germany on August 4, 1914, Canada’s involvement

was automatic. John McCrae was among the � rst wave of Ca-nadians who enlisted to serve and he was appointed as brigade surgeon to the First Brigade of the Cana-dian Forces Artillery.

In April 1915, John McCrae was sta-tioned near Ypres, Belgium, the area traditionally called Flanders. It was there, during the Second Battle of Ypres, that some of the � ercest � ghting of the First World War occurred. Work-ing from a dressing station on the banks of the Yser Canal, dressing hundreds of wounded soldiers from wave after wave of relentless enemy attack, he observed

how “we are weary in body and wearier in mind. � e general impression in my mind is of a nightmare.”

In May 1915, on the day following the death of fellow soldier Lt. Alexis Helmer of Ottawa, John McCrae wrote his now famous work, an expression of his an-guish over the loss of his friend and a re� ection of his surroundings — wild poppies growing amid simple wooden crosses marking makeshift graves. � ese 15 lines written in 20 minutes, captured an exact description of the sights and sounds of the area around him.

Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae left Ypres with these memorable few lines scrawled on a scrap of paper. His words were a poem which started, “In Flan-ders � elds the poppies blow…”. Little did

he know then that these 15 lines would become enshrined in the innermost thoughts and hearts of all soldiers who hear them. � rough his words, the scar-let poppy quickly became the symbol for soldiers who died in battle.

� e poem was � rst published on De-cember 8, 1915 in England, appearing in Punch magazine.

His poem speaks of Flanders � elds, but the subject is universal — the fear of the dead that they will be forgotten, that their death will have been in vain. Remem-brance, as symbolized by the poppy, is our eternal answer which belies that fear.

Sadly, Lieutenant-Colonel John Mc-Crae died of pneumonia at Wimereux, France on January 28, 1918. He was 45 years old.

John McCrae

Death of a friend during � erce World War I battle inspired famous 15 lines

THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGIONSpecial to The Valley Echo

Echo � le photo Echo � le photo

Remembrance Day is a time when we honour the valour and sacri� ces of Canadians who fought in WWI, WWII, the Korean War, on peacekeeping missions and in Afghanistan. � ey defend-ed our country and stood up for our values and our freedom.

I would like to particularly honour one individual for whom I have great respect and admi-ration. Mr. Bob Doratty, who is now 97, landed on Juno Beach on June 6, 1944 in the � nal push

by our Canadian troops to lib-erate Europe from German oc-cupation. Bob was 27 years old on that historic day. His platoon was one of the � rst to land on Juno Beach. He received a Com-mendation Medal from General Montgomery. Upon returning to Canada after the war, he married his bride, Molly, and together they just celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary.

� ere are not many veterans left from Juno Beach. As we approach Remembrance Day, I, along with all Canadians, will pay homage to all members, past and present, of the armed forces for their service.

I recently had the honour of presenting the Queen’s Dia-mond Jubilee Medal to Mr. Do-ratty and I would like to extend a special thanks to him for all he has done for Canada.

On Sunday the 11th, I hope you will join me in taking part in one of the many Remembrance Day ceremonies in our commu-nity. � is year, I will be attend-ing ceremonies in Golden.

And to the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces on behalf of myself, my family and the residents of Kootenay Colum-bia, thank you for your service.

Lest we forget.

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As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

-John F. Kennedy

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Again this November 11th, communities across Canada will gather to honor veterans who have sacri� ced so much for us. Our freedoms, our abil-ity to make decisions demo-cratically, and the fact we live in peace all come from the sacri� ce of others.

On Remembrance Day, we remember those who have

fallen.  But each and every day, we must show that we value all that we have been given.  And we must commit ourselves to looking after others, protecting our freedom, and furthering our democratic responsibilities.

Along with our children and grandchildren, our continued attendance at Remembrance Day ceremonies shows that we are keeping faith with our veterans.  And we prove through our actions that we will never forget.

2012 Remembrance Day messages

MP DAVID WILKSKootenay-Columbia

MLA NORM MACDONALDColumbia River-Revelstoke

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Thank you to all the veterans who have served our country.

Phone: 250-349-5462 village@canalflats.ca

Websafe: 48 33 18CMYK: 51/64/89/60

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Remembering all those that fought for our freedom

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Anything in life worth having is worth fighting for.

-Andrew Carnegie

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LEST WE FORGET

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� ank you to the entire community for the outstanding support

of the Poppy Campaign.of the Poppy Campaign.

“Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die.”

-G.K. Chesterton

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Mayor Gerry TaftDistrict of InvermereNovember 11th

means di� erent things to di� erent people.  

Sadly, for some peo-ple it is simply a day o� from school or work, or a regular day that is traded for another day o� at Christmas.

To most of us, November 11th is a mel-ancholy day, one that reminds us of sac-ri� ce, that makes us think about wars and armed con� icts from long ago- whose veterans  slowly decrease year by year. In recent years, seeing younger faces as new generations of veterans return from peacekeeping missions and  military  missions in  Afghanistan, has added a fresh, new reminder to an old message that is about the sacri� ce, pain, and risk of war.

Recently, I have been thinking that

November 11th can also be a day for celebration. To celebrate our freedom, celebrate our great country, and to cel-ebrate and dream and plan for a time in the future when we don’t have as many wars, when we don’t have veterans com-ing home with post-traumatic stress, or even worse, not coming home at all.

� is November 11th, I will be remem-bering, celebrating and hoping.

Mayor Dee ConklinVillage of Radium Hot SpringsWe owe all our veter-

ans a huge debt of grat-itude, as it is because of their sacri� ces that we continue to live in a free and democratic society. As mayor, the Remembrance Day celebrations have be-come my most cherished event to at-tend on behalf of the residents of Ra-

dium. Lest we Forget!

Mayor Ute JurasVillage of Canal FlatsRemembrance Day

is a very special day in the Village of Ca-nal Flats and the cer-emony is always well attended. Unfortu-nately,  we will mourn the passing of our last World War II veteran this year, Ray Case. Mr. Case was very involved in the community and will be greatly missed. Canal Flats is very proud of all our soldiers, past  and present, serving our great country.

Area F Director Wendy BoothRegional District of East KootenayLaying the wreath on behalf of all the

residents of the regional district is an honour that I truly cherish and look for-

ward to every year.  Re-membrance Day is the opportunity to remem-ber those who gave the ultimate sacri� ce and to thank those who are currently serving in our military for pre-serving the Canadian way of life. It is a very special day!

Area G Director Gerry WilkieRegional District of East KootenayAs we honour

those who  fought for our  priceless  lega-cy of democratic free-dom,  my  hope is  that the  time will come when no one will have to say:  “You don’t   know the real meaning of peace unless  you have been through a war."

Gerry Taft

Dee Conklin

Ute Juras

Wendy Booth

Gerry Wilkie

2012 Remembrance Day messages

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day, think of the peace

At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of Novem-ber 1918 World War I, the war to end all wars, paused as Germany accepted the terms of armistice. Out of the ashes of sacri� ce, devastation, and su� ering, the tradition of commemorating those who died with two minutes of silence was born.

Unfortunately while the tradition of Remembrance endured, the outbreak of World War II ended the peace; plunging the armies of the world into yet an-other brutal con� ict. � e list of con� icts continues unabated with Korea, the Gulf War, Afghanistan and Libyan Civil War to name just a few. In addition since World War II Canadians were involved in over

30 peacekeeping missions in places like Cyprus, the Middle East, Africa, Bosnia and Haiti.

� is history of con� ict has touched the lives of Cana-dians of all ages, all races, and all social classes. While all too many soldiers gave the supreme sacri� ce be-ing killed in action, many more were wounded both physically and mentally returning home to live the rest of their lives with the scars of war.

For what purpose have such great sacri� ces been made? � e peace and freedom that we enjoy as Canadians to-day was paid for with the blood of previous genera-tions. Remembrance Day is a special time to re� ect and pay our respects with gratitude for all the e� orts of those who have gone before us. It is also important

to recognize past and present members of the RCMP, � re� ghters, paramedics and all those who serve and protect the people of this great country that we live in.

On November 11th we will respectfully bow our heads for the Two Minute Silence in quiet re� ection

as we mourn the loss for all those who have sacri� ced their lives in combating aggression and bring-ing peace to the world. We ac-knowledge the debt that is owed to those who sacri� ce so much. We repay this debt in our Remem-

brance. � e poppy is the symbol of remembrance; but it's also a symbol of peace and the future.

At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of No-vember this year if you can’t remember war, think of the peace.

KEN CARLOW, VICE PRESIDENTRoyal Canadian Legion Branch No. 71, Invermere

“The peace and freedom that we enjoy as Canadians today was paid for with the blood of previous generations.”