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Honoring Remembrance Day: Remembering the Importance of Remembrance

by Lucas Rigamont Braganca on 2023-11-08T13:00:00-08:00 | 0 Comments

As November arrives, our thoughts naturally turn to Remembrance Day, a solemn and significant occasion in our calendar. It is a time when we, as a global community, come together to remember and honor the sacrifices made by those who served in the armed forces and paid the ultimate price for the freedoms we enjoy today.

The Significance of Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day, observed on November 11th each year, holds immense importance for a multitude of reasons. Here are a few key aspects that make this day significant:

  1. Honoring Sacrifice: Remembrance Day serves as a poignant reminder of the tremendous sacrifices made by our servicemen and women throughout history. It's a day to pay our respects and remember those who gave their lives to protect our way of life.

  2. Reflecting on History: On this day, we are encouraged to reflect on the history of conflicts, wars, and peacekeeping missions that have shaped our world. It's an opportunity to learn from the past to ensure a more peaceful future.

  3. Support for Veterans: Remembrance Day is not only about the past; it's also about supporting and acknowledging the living veterans. These brave individuals often face physical, emotional, and psychological challenges after their service, and Remembrance Day reminds us to show gratitude and provide the care and support they deserve.

  4. Promoting Peace: Ultimately, Remembrance Day is a call for peace. It encourages us to work towards a world where conflicts and wars are replaced by diplomacy and cooperation. We remember the past to inspire a more harmonious future.

Ways to Observe Remembrance Day

There are numerous meaningful ways to observe Remembrance Day:

  1. Attend a Ceremony: Many communities hold Remembrance Day ceremonies, complete with parades, speeches, and moments of silence. Attending one of these events is a powerful way to pay your respects.

  2. Wear a Poppy: The red poppy has become a symbol of Remembrance Day, inspired by the famous war poem, "In Flanders Fields." Wearing a poppy is a simple yet powerful gesture to show your support.

  3. Educate Yourself: Use this time to learn more about the history of conflicts and the experiences of those who served. Libraries offer a wealth of resources, including books, documentaries, and exhibitions, that can provide insight into the past.

  4. Contribute to Veterans' Organizations: Consider donating to organizations that support veterans and their families. Your support can make a real difference in their lives.

  5. Teach the Next Generation: Share the importance of Remembrance Day with younger generations. Encourage them to understand the significance of honoring our veterans and the pursuit of peace.

Visit Your Library

Libraries play a vital role in preserving history and providing resources for learning about the past. We invite you to visit Geoffrey R. Weller library, where you can find an array of books, documentaries, and historical records that shed light on the sacrifices made by generations before us.

 

Here are a few resources available trough our library to learn more about this date:

 

Cover ArtForgotten Warriors by Loretta Todd

Publication Date: 1997
This documentary introduces us to thousands of Indigenous Canadians who enlisted and fought alongside their countrymen and women during World War II, even though they could not be conscripted. Ironically, while they fought for the freedom of others, they were being denied equality in their own country and returned home to find their land seized. Loretta Todd's poignant film offers forth the testimony of those who were there, and how they managed to heal.
 

Cover ArtUnwanted Soldiers by Jari Osborne

Publication Date: 1999
This documentary tells the personal story of filmmaker Jari Osborne's father, a Chinese-Canadian veteran. She describes her father's involvement in World War II and uncovers a legacy of discrimination and racism against British Columbia's Chinese-Canadian community. Sworn to secrecy for decades, Osborne's father and his war buddies now vividly recall their top-secret missions behind enemy lines in Southeast Asia. Theirs is a tale of young men proudly fighting for a country that had mistreated them. This film does more than reveal an important period in Canadian history. It pays moving tribute to a father's quiet heroism.
 

Cover ArtAnd We Knew How to Dance: Women in World War I by Maureen Judge

Publication Date: 1993
This feature documentary profiles 12 Canadian women who entered the male-dominated world of munitions factories and farm labour during World War I. In 1994, aged 86 to 101, these women recall their wartime work experiences and the ways in which their commitment and determination helped lead the way to postwar social changes for women.
 

Cover ArtThe World in Flames by Frans Coetzee; Marilyn Shevin-Coetzee

Call Number: D735 .W59 2011
ISBN: 9780195174427
Publication Date: 2010-03-03
"An edited volume of primary sources from the Second World War, The World in Flames: A World War II Sourcebook is the first of its kind to provide an ambitious and wide-ranging survey of the war in a convenient and comprehensive package. Conveying the sheer scale and reach of the conflict, the book's twelve chapters include sufficient narrative and analysis to enable students to grasp both the war's broad outlines and the context and significance of each particular source. Beginning with the growing disenchantment over the World War I peace settlements and the determination of German, Italian, and Japanese leaders to revise the situation, the book traces the descent into open, armed conflict. It covers the spectacular early successes of the Germans and Japanese, the pivotal campaigns of 1942, and the Allied effort during the remaining three years to destroy the Axis' capacity to wage war. Drawing examples from a wide range of documents, the text also includes visual sources: propaganda posters, photos, and cartoons."
 

Cover ArtFor King and Kanata by Timothy C. Winegard

Call Number: D639.I56 W55 2012
ISBN: 9780887557286
Publication Date: 2012-01-15
"The first comprehensive history of the Aboriginal First World War experience on the battlefield and the home front. When the call to arms was heard at the outbreak of the First World War, Canada's First Nations pledged their men and money to the Crown to honour their long-standing tradition of forming military alliances with Europeans during times of war, and as a means of resisting cultural assimilation and attaining equality through shared service and sacrifice. Initially, the Canadian government rejected these offers based on the belief that status Indians were unsuited to modern, civilized warfare. But in 1915, Britain intervened and demanded Canada actively recruit Indian soldiers to meet the incessant need for manpower. Thus began the complicated relationships between the Imperial Colonial and War Offices, the Department of Indian Affairs, and the Ministry of Militia that would affect every aspect of the war experience for Canada's Aboriginal soldiers. In his groundbreaking new book, For King and Kanata, Timothy C. Winegard reveals how national and international forces directly influenced the more than 4,000 status Indians who voluntarily served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force between 1914 and 1919--a per capita percentage equal to that of Euro-Canadians--and how subsequent administrative policies profoundly affected their experiences at home, on the battlefield, and as returning veterans."
 

Cover ArtCatastrophe 1914 by Max Hastings

Call Number: D511 .H37 2013
ISBN: 9780307597052
Publication Date: 2013-09-24

"From the acclaimed military historian, a new history of the outbreak of World War I: from the breakdown of diplomacy to the dramatic battles that occurred before the war bogged down in the trenches. World War I immediately evokes images of the trenches: grinding, halting battles that sacrificed millions of lives for no territory or visible gain. Yet the first months of the war, from the German invasion of Belgium to the Marne to Ypres, were utterly different, full of advances and retreats, tactical maneuvering, and significant gains and losses. In Catastrophe 1914, Max Hastings re-creates this dramatic year, from the diplomatic crisis to the fighting in Belgium and France on the Western front, and Serbia and Galicia to the east. He gives vivid accounts of the battles and frank assessments of generals and political leaders, and shows why it was inevitable that this first war among modern industrial nations could not produce a decisive victory, making a war of attrition inevitable. Throughout we encounter high officials and average soldiers, as well as civilians on the homefront, giving us a vivid portrait of how a continent became embroiled in a war that would change everything"

 

Cover ArtIn Flanders Fields and Other Poems by John McCrae; Sir Andrew Macphail (Foreword by); Michael Gnarowski (Introduction by)

Call Number: PR9199.3.M424 A6 2015
ISBN: 9781459728646
Publication Date: 2014-04-21
 
 

Cover ArtWe Were Freedom by Marc Chalifoux (Editor); Andrew Cohen (Foreword by); Dominion Institute Staff

Call Number: D811.A2 W4 2010
ISBN: 9781554703029
Publication Date: 2010-12-14
The Memory Project is a remarkable collection of oral histories that pays tribute to the men and woman who fought in one of Canada's greatest military efforts. Edited by Marc Chalifoux, executive director of The Dominion Institute, The Memory Project is an extension of an on-going educational program that connects veterans with school children across the country. In the powerful words of the veterans' themselves, the World War II experience is revealed in intimate detail -- from enlistment and active duty to the home front and eventual victory. Accompanying the stories is a wealth of archival material including photographs, documents, medals, letters, and more. In turns moving, horrifying, and heartwarming, The Memory Project is an exceptional piece of history -- a record of the men and women who fought, and sometimes perished, in order to preserve our way of life."
This Remembrance Day, let's come together as a community to honor the memory of those who served and sacrificed for our freedoms. It's an occasion to remember the past, support our veterans, and work towards a more peaceful world and remember our library will be closed on Friday 10th but open on weekend for your needs. 

In the words of John McCrae, the author of "In Flanders Fields," let us remember: "To you from failing hands we throw the torch; be yours to hold it high."

Lest we forget.


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