Remembrance Day services across British Columbia fell silent for two minutes to honour the sacrifice of war and military veterans, with some attendees reflecting on traditions of service running through their families.
Retired RCMP sergeant Don Bindon, who attended the service at Victory Square in Vancouver dressed in the red serge uniform, said his son is in the army and his father also served in the army during the Second World War.
Bindon said he marches every year that he can, to honour the "awful lot of very good men and women" who have died in war on behalf of Canadians.
Ceremonies were held across the province Tuesday, with flyovers from Royal Canadian Air Force aircraft in the B.C. Interior, on Vancouver Island, and at the service at Victory Square, where a Sikorsky Cyclone helicopter roared overhead at the site of Vancouver's annual ceremony since 1924.
This year’s ceremonies comes 80 years after the end of the Second World War.
Chief Petty Officer, 2nd Class, Matthew Chabassol, attended a service at the grounds of the legislature in Victoria with his two children, 10-year-old William and eight-year-old Sadie.
He said Remembrance Day gives him the opportunity to think about his friends and family who have also served.
"Some of them aren't with us anymore," he said. "It gives me a really strong reminder of the things we have done and accomplished."
Thousands of other B.C. residents attended the ceremony in Victoria filling most of the lawn outside the legislature and the intersection kitty-corner to the historic Empress Hotel. It was the first in event in several years that took place under clear skies.
Victoria Member of Parliament Will Greaves and MLA Grace Lore were among other local dignitaries attending the ceremony and laying wreaths, joining veterans and senior figures representing the branches of the Canadian Armed Forces.
There was a heavy turnout, but Chabassol said he doesn't mind if people choose not to attend an event, as long as they take time to reflect on the service of veterans.
"I think that's the important thing," he said. "I'm not concerned if you come to a ceremony. I'm not concerned if you wear the poppy or not."
Veteran Ian Whiting was among the hundreds of people who surrounded Vancouver's Victory Square at the city's annual event.
Whiting, who served in the Royal Canadian Airforce for 14 years, said he followed in the footsteps of his parents, both of whom served in the military.
"I felt it was important to make a contribution," he said, reflecting on his decision to enlist.
"The thing that stands out of my memory is the dedication of the people in the armed forces. I've never met one that wasn't committed, and that's what attracted me (to serve)."
Retired major Roger Prouse, 87, served 47 years in military and volunteer service.
"I first joined the army cadets as a 14-year-old at the B.C. regiment just up the street here on Beatty Street, as a matter of fact," he reflected ahead of the Vancouver service.
He said his father was a First World War veteran, while his brother also served in the military, and it was in his "family’s blood to serve our country."
Prouse later placed a single white rose on the cenotaph and was among those who laid an official wreath on behalf of the City of Vancouver.
"It is very important that we remember those who have served our country in war and peace time," he said.
Bill Wilson, president of the Royal Canadian Legion branch 292 in Victoria, said younger Canadians need to become more engaged and knowledgeable about the sacrifices that have been made by past generations.
He pointed to the Netherlands, which has a more active culture of remembrance, with schoolchildren tending the graves of Canadian soldiers who died while liberating that country from German occupation during the Second World War.
"What they end up with is a youth that is highly informed about the risks, about the costs, who paid those costs," he said. "Every year, they will go out and tend the Canadians' graves."
He added that Canada does not necessarily need to follow suit.
"But clearly communicating with younger people and making them aware of the past, the challenges of days, those are all going to pay benefits."
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
