Monument unveiled; silver cross ceremony Saturday

Both events are being held in honour of Canadians who have lost their lives serving their country in Afghanistan.

On Friday afternoon, at Maple Grove Education Centre, the club will unveil a monument dedicated to the Canadian men and women who have died while serving in the war in Afghanistan.

Located next to Maple Grove’s existing monument, the new one was put up last week and will be unveiled officially Friday at 1:45 p.m.

On Saturday, at the Mariners Centre, the memorial club will present four more of its silver crosses. The club presents the crosses to fathers of soldiers who have died in the Afghan mission.

Saturday’s ceremony is scheduled for 2 p.m.

There will be special seating for veterans at both Friday’s monument unveiling and Saturday’s silver cross ceremony and the memorial club invites all veterans to attend, says Joe Bishara, the club’s teacher adviser.

Interviewed last week about this weekend’s activities, he said there has been much community support for what the memorial club is doing. “The response has been wonderful,” he said.

Referring to the new monument, he said he expected it would be fully in place by the end of last week. “We’ll probably keep it covered until next Friday (May 8) and we’ll go from there,” he said.

As for the silver cross ceremony, he said the event really is for all families who have lost loved ones in Afghanistan, not just those who will receive the memorial club’s silver crosses. “It’s a gift to all those in the nation who have lost their sons and daughters,” he said.

The club’s goal is eventually to present its silver crosses to all fathers of soldiers from Nova Scotia who have fallen in Afghanistan.

In the club’s official invitation to this weekend’s events, Bishara notes the importance of honouring veterans and remembering the people who died in the service of their country. “Canada has a great history of bravery and sacrifice and those killed in Afghanistan take their rightful place in the realm of The Valiant,” he wrote. “Our war dead will never be forgotten as long as we assemble in gratitude and remembrance of them.”