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Wet, snowy conditions weren’t enough to deter hundreds of people from gathering outside and paying their respects at Regina’s Cenotaph in Victoria Park on Thursday.
One of those people in attendance was Gordon Basaraba with the Navy League of Canada.
Gordon Barasaba with the Navy League of Canada on Remembrance Day, 2021. (Logan Stein/980 CJME)
Basaraba said that after last year’s ceremony was impacted because of COVID, it made this year’s even more important to acknowledge.
“This is the first step of getting people to gather again, and to remember the people we’ve lost,” Basaraba said. “I served 35 years in the Naval Reserve with HMCS Queen here in Regina, the significance of today has to do with the people that I’ve worked with and served with and the people that I have lost.
“I’ve lost a number of my friends, this is my chance to come here and remember them.”
This Remembrance Day marks the 100th anniversary of the poppy.
Basaraba was delighted to see so many people show up wearing one. He added that it is important people don’t become lethargic when it comes to showing appreciation for those who have served and continue to serve.
“I hope that we always remember the sacrifices that people have made for us,” he said. “I was really, really impressed to see how many people came out in the cold, in the wet, in the snow to remember.
“I think that’s just great. That just shows you how tough and resilient people in Regina are.”
From the Regina Cenotaph today. #LestWeForget #CanadaRemembers pic.twitter.com/U1N7KxBdlW
— Logan Stein (@L0ganStein) November 11, 2021
Veteran celebrates Remembrance Day with 102-year-old watch
James Balfour is a retired Lieutenant Commander from the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve.
Serving in the military is something that has always been important to his family.
Balfour acknowledges the importance of Remembrance Day by carrying a pocket-watch that once belonged to his grandfather who had served in the First World War.
James Balfour’s watch that his grandfather received at the end of World War 1. (Logan Stein/980 CJME)
“Every Remembrance Day he put this in his pocket and carried it with him,” Balfour said. “After he passed away in 1984 We went and found it in his sock drawer. It was in one of those big grey woolen socks along with all of his medals.
“My dad had it and when he passed away in 2005 I got the watch. He carried it all those years since my grandfather died, and I’ve carried it ever since.”
Balfour chuckled as he opened the watch and opened his palm.
“You can still wind it up. It still works. It’s an amazing watch,” he said.
One day Balfour hopes to pass it down to his daughter.
“If you do not remember your history, sometimes you’re doomed to repeat it,” he said. ” Acts of remembrance are always important. Because, you know, without them, we lose a sense of where we need to be going.”
