The traditional Remembrance Day services are returning to the Cenotaph at McMullen Park in Verona on November 11.

After a break of a few years, local veterans will be able to mark the solemn occasion in Verona once again. The Verona Community Association (VCA) and the Verona Lions Club are helping out with arrangements for the ceremony, and Prince Charles Public School is going to participate as well, as students will be attending the service, which starts at 10:30 a.m.

Leann Benoit, a former Verona resident, has been working behind the scenes to bring the ceremony back to the park.

“It seems like it is all coming together,” she said early this week. “Linda Bates from the VCA has been engaged on this; the school is coming back after holding ceremonies in the gym for a few years, and veterans like Deb and Doug Lovegrove are involved as well. The RCMP, OPP, and the armed forces are all laying wreathes, so we are a go.”

After the ceremony, a reception will be held at Mom Restaurant. All are welcome to attend.

Over 120 members of the local community gathered for the first Remembrance Day ceremony in Plevna, which took place at the new war memorial on November 11. The memorial was erected in front of the Clar-Mill Community Centre earlier this year. Led by Northbrook Legion Branch #328 president, Mike Powley Jr., the ceremony included words by North Frontenac Mayor Ron Higgins, who focused on Canada's involvement in the First World War, specifically the high points of Canadian military achievement that became known as “Canada's Hundred Days”. The “Hundred Days” involved a series of attacks made along the Western Front by the Canadian Corps in a 96-day offensive that ended the war. Councilor Gerry Martin read the names of many of Plevna's veterans who fought and died for the country since World War 1, and Northbrook Legion Padre, Harry Adringa, read a series of prayers.

Students from Clarendon Central Public School in Plevna under the guidance of teacher Katie McDonald also participated at the service. Grade six student, Madison Gunsinger, read the poem “In Flanders Fields”, after which the students joined together to sing “Let There Be Peace on Earth”. Ron Lemke also played and sang “Amazing Grace”. Numerous wreaths were laid by local dignitaries and other members of the community and to close the service, The Act of Remembrance was read out. The new war memorial has created a place where residents of Plevna and the surrounding community can now gather for their very own Remembrance Day service.

There was a moment during Lloyd Arnold's service with the Canadian army when he could have left the special forces and become a member of the permanent army. Doing so would even have allowed him to shave a month off his one-year commitment in Korea.

“But I told them that if I could make it through 11 months I could do one more and that would be that.”

Arnold signed up in August of 1950. He was 19 years old at the time and was working for a pipe fitting company in Shawinigan when he decided to heed a call from Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent for volunteers to sign up for a special force for a “police action” in Korea.

Lloyd Arnold's father had served in the First World War, and was stationed for a time in Vladivostok. He also had two uncles in that war, one of whom rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. A number of Arnold's cousins served in WW2, including one who was killed in a bombing raid in 1942 and another who participated in D-Day and died nine days later in battle.

“Back in those days King and Country was something to me, and I thought I should do my part when the call came in 1950,” he said.

He signed up in August and then trained both in Washington State and later, in northern Japan, where he took a Vickers machine gun course.

“I expected to be a gunner after that training but one day and officer came into my barracks where I was sitting with a buddy of mine and he asked us if we wanted to take a drive. The next thing we knew we ended up in transport,” he said.

He landed in Korea in May, 1951 and spent the next 12 months ferrying ammunition from a depot to the troops who were holding a mountain range near the 38th parallel, land that today is likely part of the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.

He remembers how cold it was in the winter. “I don't think my legs ever really thawed out the whole time, and the truck was wide open to the elements, so I remember how cold it was in there,” he said, but apart from that says he did not think much about the danger.

“We had a job to do and we did it. We were very young,” he said.

One thing he remembers was a special delivery he made at Christmas time in 1951, a truckload full of Labatt's 50 ale, one bottle for each soldier.

“They counted those bottles before I drove off and when I arrived; I do remember that,” he said.

When his tour was over, the men made their way back rather slowly, finally boarding a train on the west coast in July.

“We stopped in Calgary and came off the train to a big meal and reception for us,” he said, “and there were other events as we kept travelling east.”

When they got to Montreal, where his family was, “We got off at the Westmount Athletic Town. There were about 15 of us, and our families came to meet us. We left and went on our way and I never really thought about the war after that - and the government never thought about us either. They called it a police action for all those years, until 2009.”

Arnold went back to Shawinigan and got his old job back. He stayed in the same business for his entire career, including taking a degree in business management at McGill University.

Even though he lived in Canada, he worked for Celanese Corporation (US) for many years, handling their accounts across Canada.

After retiring in Kingston, he purchased a home, with his wife Gail, in Crow Lake about 14 years ago and they have been enjoying their retirement ever since.

Lloyd Arnold has been acknowledged for his war efforts by the Canadian government. In 1990 they sent him a medal, and in 2000 he received a letter from the US government thanking him for his contribution. In 2009 he also received a medal from the government of Japan.

Although the stayed away from the Royal Canadian Legion for many years, particularly since in earlier times Legion membership was not open to Korean war vets, but he has joined the Sharbot Lake Legion since moving to Crow Lake and is an active member.

He is not taking part in the Remembrance Day ceremony this year, however.

“I can't stand that long,” he said, adding that he might go to the Legion for the reception afterwards.

As always, a large gathering of all ages from the local and surrounding communities attended the Remembrance Day service at the Flinton cenotaph on Sunday, Nov. 8. Led by Mike Powley, president of the Northbrook Legion Branch 328, the service was attended by numerous members of the Northbrook Legion, many local dignitaries, and a number of young members of the 640 Cadets from Cloyne. The service took place under sunny skies and included prayers by Legion Padre Harry Andringa, remarks by Addington Highlands Reeve Henry Hogg, and the laying of 35 wreaths whose dedications were read aloud by Pastor Rob of the Kaladar Pentecostal Church.

Powley opened the service with the words, “Let us pause to think reverently of those of our comrades who by sea, by land and in the air laid down their lives for their sovereign and country. Their sacrifice will ever inspire us to labour on, to the end that those who survive and need our aid may be assured of assistance, and that the country in which we live, and for which they died may ever be worthy of the sacrifice they made.”

Following the laying of 35 wreaths, members of the community who attended the service were invited to place their poppies at the cenotaph. The service concluded with a lunch that was served at Through the Roof Ministries located just down the road. Legion President Powley, who led this and other Remembrance Day services for his first time as the new president of the Northbrook Legion, said he was honored to be asked to fulfill that role. “My father, Corp. Reg Powley Sr., who was from Odessa and was a veteran who served in the Canadian army in Europe in WW2 from 1942-1945, helped to liberate Holland. He met my mother Dixie following the liberation there. Leading these services has allowed me to pay my respects not only to my own parents but to all of the veterans who served as well.”

Remembrance Day will have particular significance for Brian and Brenda McKinstry of Arden and their family this year. In the lead up week to November 11th, the McKinstry family are being profiled across the country as having provided military service over five continuous generations from 1917 to the present.

In 1917, conscription for the WWI war effort was in place in Canada. However, William McKinstry, Brian’s grandfather, volunteered for service at the age of 33. Leaving his pregnant wife and son, he was immediately assigned to demolition and trenching duties leading up to the battle for Vimy Ridge which would prove to be a defining moment in Canadian history. Sadly, William was killed in action in the month before the battle and is buried in the Ecoivres Military Cemetery near the Vimy Ridge memorial in France.

The son William never saw, Clifford McKinstry, Brian’s father, recognizing the threat German aggression represented, enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force early on into WWII. Flight Lieutenant McKinstry flew Lancaster bombers with Bomber Command, one of the deadliest and most dangerous assignments of the Second World War. For every 100 Allied airmen who joined Bomber Command, 45 were killed, six were seriously wounded, eight became Prisoners of War, and only 41 escaped unscathed (at least physically). It was a loss rate comparable only to the worst slaughter of the First World War trenches. Clifford returned to Canada after the war and continued to serve in the RCAF until retirement. Of note, Clifford and his wife, Eileen acquired property on Kennebec Lake in the late 1950’s and eventually retired to the lake until ill health necessitated a move to the Kingston area.

Following in his father’s footsteps, Clifford’s son Darrell enlisted with the RCAF in the early 1960’s during the height of the Cold War. With the constant threat of nuclear war from the 1950s to the 1980s, Canadian men and women in uniform served on the front lines of freedom’s borders in Europe, patrolling oceans for submarines and surface ships, watching for and intercepting aircraft flying into North American airspace, and deploying around the world, wherever they were needed. As part of this effort, Captain Darrell McKinstry served throughout the Cold War as an Instrument Technician and eventually an Air Traffic Controller until retirement.

At a time when conflicts became much more regionalized and Canada’s military assumed a role as a NATO peace keeping force, Darrell’s son, Shawn enlisted with the Canadian Army in the early 1980’s and would be assigned numerous engagements throughout trouble spots in the world including the Sinai, Cyprus and Croatia. It was while serving in Croatia in 1993 that Shawn would distinguish himself as part of the 2nd Battalion, PPCLI action in repulsing a Croatian ethnic cleansing effort at the infamous Medak Pocket incident. Shawn currently resides in South Frontenac and now serves as a reserve officer commanding the very same Canadian Army Regiment his great grandfather volunteered to join almost 100 years ago, the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment centered in Belleville, Ontario.

Much to his surprise, Lieutenant-Colonel Shawn McKinstry watched his son Justin enlist in the Canadian Army Signal Corps and be deployed to Afghanistan as a specialist in bomb detection, removal and disposal, thereby establishing a continuous succession of five generations of service to the Canadian military. Upon return to Canada, Justin successfully transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy as a Clearance Diver, and currently is stationed on the east coast.

‘Service before Self’ is the theme for this year’s Remembrance Week. The McKinstry family has demonstrated this concept in the past and continues to exemplify this spirit today.

I read your article Edward Nelson Badour, Nov 5/15 with great interest, as I am one of his great-grand nieces. My name is Jacki Hollywood. I am the daughter of William (Bill) Hollywood, originally from Sharbot Lake (and great grand daughter of Julia (Badour) Hollywood). I currently live in England with my husband, LCol Kevin Brown who works with a NATO unit here.

Last spring, our family had the opportunity to tour of some of the World War I battlefields with fellow Canadians posted in the UK. We visited several cemeteries and memorials in France including the Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele Canadian Memorials, both battlefields at which Nelson Badour fought.

The highlight of the trip for our family was having the honour of placing a wreath at the Menin Gate Last Post Ceremony (30 May 2015). The ceremony was very moving.

I wish I had known about Edward Nelson Badour prior to our trip. Although we looked at the names of Canadian soldiers engraved on the Menin Gate and said thank you to all soldiers who lost their lives, it would have meant so much more if I had been able to specifically thank a member of the family.

Thank you very much for publishing the story about one of my ancestors. I would also like to extend special thank you to FASCFLA for their research and dedication to our fallen soldiers and the Hollywood Legion for ensuring that their memories live on.

Je me souviens.

Members of the Northbrook Legion headed up the Remembrance Day service in Denbigh with a service and wreath laying ceremony honouring those who fought and died for the country. The service, which took place on November 1 at the Denbigh cenotaph located at St. Luke's United Church, was the first of many Remembrance Day services that are bring held in North, Central and South Frontenac. The service was led by Northbrook Legion Padre, Harry Andringa, who will also be heading up the upcoming Remembrance Day services in Flinton and Plevna.

One of the area's oldest veterans, Gordon Wood was present at the Denbigh service. Wood who is a WW2 veteran, landed in Normandy on D-Day on June 6, 1944 and fought until liberation took place in Holland on May 5, 1945. Andringa, who is originally from Holland and retired to Flinton, said he met Wood after moving to Flinton. Andringa said both he and Wood experienced the war first hand in Holland, Wood as a Canadian soldier and Andringa as a teenage civilian. The service included prayers and the laying of 13 wreaths by numerous dignitaries, Legion members and members of the community at large.

As part of their Soldier of the Great War project, Family and Children's Services of Frontenac Lennox and Addington (FACSFLA) has put together a web page devoted to the memory of Edward Nelson Badour. Badour died on November 17, 1917 after being wounded and captured by German forces one week earlier, on November 10, during the Battle of Passchendaele in Belgium. Passchendaele was one of the most deadly battles of the war for Canadian troops, with nearly 16,000 dead (the British lost 275,000 and the Germans 220,000 in the mud at Passchendaele according the Canadian War Museum).

Edward Badour enlisted with the 146th Battalion on March 29, 1916 in the village of Sharbot Lake at the age of 32. His occupation was listed as “labourer”. He was married to Norah Badour (nee Cota) in 1909 and his religion was listed as Roman Catholic. The battalion trained at Barriefield in Kingston, and embarked for Liverpool on September 25 from Halifax. During the training, Private Badour was disciplined once, on August 8, but there is no record of any punishment being handed out.

He arrived in Liverpool on October 6, 1916 and was absorbed into the 95th Battalion. On March 6, 1917 he was posted to the 20th Battalion and arrived in Havre, France on March 9.

Badour participated in the battle of Vimy Ridge with the 20th Battalion. The battalion was given the task of trying to finish off the Passchendaele offensive, which had been ongoing since late July, and the Canadians were successful. In fact, on the day that Edward Badour was wounded and captured, November 10, the battle ended.

“The Canadian Corps launched a final action on 10 November, to gain control of the remaining high ground north of the village near Hill 52, which ended the campaign ...” - (source Wikipedia entry.)

In the war diary prepared for that day there is reference to what the troops were up against.

“Throughout the day the enemy subjected our lines to constant artillery fire, concentrating particularly on the church corner at Passchendaele. This made the carrying of messages, and the evacuation of wounded, extremely difficult. During the evening the Defy Crossing road was under continuous M.G. Fire. Rain commenced at 7 am and was intermittent throughout the day, resulting in the trenches very quickly becoming very bad, in fact, so bad that the men left them at night and lay out in the open.”

What happened to Edward Badour between November 10 and November 17 is not known. The German army only sent notification of his death and his burial site has not been determined. His name is commemorated on the walls of the Menin gate in Ypres, Belgium, where each night of the year at 8 p.m. a local detachment performs the last post in honour of the war dead. His name is also inscribed on page 194 of the Book of Remembrance of WW1. The page is displayed for public viewing in the memorial chamber of the Parliament of Canada on May 4 each year.

When Al Lloyd, the 21st Battalion historian from Kingston, was approached by John Suart of the FACSFLA to research the story of Edward Badour, Lloyd contacted the Sharbot Lake Legion Branch, which is named for the Hollywood family (it is the Hollowood branch because of typo when it was officially dedicated). June Crawford, the branch president, arranged for Edward's nephew, Ron Hollywood to meet with Lloyd.

When interviewed this week by the News for this article, Ron Hollywood said that he did not know very much about his mother's brother Edward.

“I was born in 1935, the baby in a family of 10 boys and 4 girls, on the Hollywood farm across from St. George's Lake. My parents worked from dawn until dusk, we all did, and there was little time to talk about the past,” he recalls.

Coincidentally, 5 of Ron's brothers enlisted for WW2, and served in Europe.

Ron said he does not even remember exactly when five of his brothers signed up for World War 2 since he was only about five years old at the time.

“I was young and the house was very busy. All I knew was they were gone and eventually they came back. All but Herb, who died in battle.”

He does remember when the news of his brother's death was delivered to his mother, early one evening.

“She just sat in a rocking chair by the stove and cried. That I still remember,” he said.

Another of Ron's brothers, Ken, was hit near his right eye by a bullet, which exited through the back of his head. However, Ken did not die from his wound, although he remained in hospital for two years. He died two years ago at the age of 95.

As part of the Soldier of the Great War project, John Suart brought Al Lloyd to the Sharbot Lake Legion branch to meet with June and Vern Crawford of the branch executive and Ron Hollywood. Lloyd presented the materials he had found through his research to them and Suart took three videos. All of this material, including the video, is available at http://www.facsfla.ca/remember. 

“Before, this soldier was just a name on a plaque. We’ve managed to bring him to life,” said Suart. “He was a real person. And that’s worth remembering on Remembrance Day.”

“He has seen the elephant,” Old soldiers, during the Civil War, coined this phrase for green troops who had survived their first taste of battle.

December 2003, 0600 hours, Camp Julian, Afghanistan: At 58 years old, the oldest Major in NATO to serve in a combat zone plods up the hill to the huge tent-type shelter that serves as the gym. Someone with no respect for rank is on my stair climber. A long haired guy. Begrudgingly, I take a machine beside Mr. Tom Cochrane, an aging Canadian rock star who is with the Rick Mercer show tour. They’ll be in camp for about 10 days and then go home just before Xmas. A great show.

I’m not a huge fan of celebrities. We don’t live in the same worlds. But these particular celebrities have volunteered their time to entertain our troops. I had heard Mercer tell the story that when he called Tom to convince him to join the tour, Tom’s only comment was “When do we leave?” …….I engage the rocker in conversation.

Tom is obviously delighted to be here. He talks about missing his deceased father and then he heaps huge praise on our young soldiers. Mentions how they are motivated, intelligent, and inspiring. He speaks of their dedication, courage and their strong sense of humanity. …… I like this guy!

January 27, 2004, Camp Julian: I blow past the sentries, at the camp gates, in a Pajero, civilian pattern SUV, filled with officers and a couple Colonel equivalent civilians. My #2 is Capt Dave Parker, and he is at the wheel. We’re trying to catch up to a convoy that has just recently departed. A procedural glitch held me up but I’m sure we can catch the convoy within a mile or two at most.

Unknown to me, at the time, I’m also racing to witness the events that will comprise a ballad that Tom Cochrane doesn’t yet realize he’s about to write. A song called “Rough and Tumble” and featuring Corporal Brendan Murphy (born in 1977 in Newfoundland, and died on Jan 27, 2004 “in a dusty road in Kabul.”) In his song, Tom will allude to the character required to be a soldier.

We’re about a mile outside the wire and expecting to see the tail end of the convoy at any minute. Then, in an instant, the whole day went pear shaped. Even though we’re inside the vehicle we feel the sudden, violent concussion and then we see a plume of smoke up ahead. I look at Dave and we know exactly what has happened. Dave drops the hammer and I pull out my handgun, rack it, safety on, round up the spout.

Within a minute, we pass a civilian bus on the left. Windows blown out, still smoking and a couple bodies still inside. Then we come upon the tail end vehicle of the convoy. Carnage all around! Body parts of the suicide bomber, that didn’t get vaporized, strewn about. A pink mist settled over ground zero and Cpl Murphy facing backwards in the driver side jump seat, still strapped into the seat harness of the non-armoured Iltis Jeep (the last time this class of vehicle was ever used in a combat mission): Corporal Murphy was dead!

Not a day goes by that people like us don’t relive these kinds of scenes. Sometimes in slow motion, sometimes, just fragments. There is no doubt that if I had caught the convoy, my vehicle with senior officers would have been the more attractive target. A young man would still be alive.

As has so often happened to many other soldiers, with only days left in my last mission and my career for that matter, the guy from Connaught Hill immediately qualifies as poster boy for survivor guilt.

On this coming Nov 11, as the first strains of the bugle playing the Last Post can be heard, war veterans will start to imperceptibly, internally, spin out of control. Jaws will tighten, their stance will noticeably stiffen rigidly to attention as they pay respect to comrades not present. You’ll almost be able to hear their minds, at warp speed, returning to some of their own experiences.

The killing grounds of Iran/Iraq, the ubiquitous minefields and mass grave sites of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Kosovo, and the dusty streets of Kabul and Kandahar.

You won’t be able to feel the turmoil the vets feel during the minute of silence. You won’t see the faces or hear the sounds they’re hearing. Sometimes they’re even convinced that the smells of those horrific events come back to them but normally that only happens at night when the demons come to call.

They have seen the elephant!

The Remembrance Day services held in North, Central and South Frontenac were all very well attended this year. That was likely due in part to the tragic events that took place in Ottawa and Quebec a few weeks ago, and the fact that 2014 marks the start of both World Wars, the first 100 years ago and the second 75 years ago. In Flinton Pastor Bruce Kellar led the service there on November 9, which was attended by numerous members of the Northbrook Legion as well as various local groups and organizations including members of the Land O'Lakes Cadets. After the laying of the wreaths, those in attendance were invited by Pastor Kellar to lay their poppies at the cenotaph, demonstrating an active way of remembering all of those who have suffered and were lost in the numerous wars that Canada has fought over the last 100 years.

In Sydenham hundreds gathered for a service at the cenotaph on November 11 at The Point, which was led by Rev. Giuseppe Gagliano of St. Paul's Anglican Church. President of the Sydenham Legion, Kate Lett, also spoke at the service. The names of local soldiers who lost their lives in WW 1, WW 2 and the Korean War were read aloud. Sydenham High School exchange student Diego Hoya performed the Last Post and Reveille, which was followed by the laying of the wreaths. The service was also attended by students in grades six through eight from Loughborough Public School.