Chestermere, AB – This coming Remembrance Day, those who gather at the Remembrance Day Service will see brand new banners featuring the faces of veterans who have connections to community members. The banners are part of a new initiative from the Streetscapes Committee created to help the community remember the veterans in their lives.
“It is very important that we never forget the sacrifice of our veterans, and this new program is a special opportunity for our us to remember them,” says Mayor Marshall Chalmers.
Residents wishing to participate need to complete the ‘Honour Our Veterans Banner Program’ form available on the City’s website and upload the official service photo of the veteran they wish to honour. Once they pay the fee of $165, a banner will be produced and hung in Anniversary Park each fall during the Remembrance Day Season for a minimum of three years.
“We wanted to do something special to honour Remembrance Day,” says Bea Germain, the project’s initiator. “My husband came across this idea in his Legion magazine and we thought it would be a wonderful project to bring to Chestermere. I am so delighted that it has evolved into a full program for the whole community.”
Anyone is welcome to apply for the program and can honour any veteran they know who served in regular forces, reserves or as peacekeepers. The veteran does not need to have a personal connection to Chestermere.
“I hope this program allows some of our local families to learn a bit more about their connections to our military history,” says Germain. “When you put face and a story to an event, it becomes more real and we can help our community remember the reason we have the freedom we do.”
In order to have the banners ready for this Remembrance Day season, the 2019 application deadline is August 1.
To learn more and apply for your own banner, visit www.chestermere.ca/veteransbanner.
