A ceremony took place Friday morning in Steinbach, commemorating the 70th anniversary of D-Day. Steinbach Legion President Keith Duncan, together with Provencher Member of Parliament Ted Falk laid a wreath at the cenotaph along Main Street.
"It was a very historic day," notes Falk, referring to June 6, 1944 when allied forces invaded Normandy, marking the beginning of the end of World War Two. "There were fourteen thousand Canadians that landed on the beaches of Normandy that day that participated in the invasion that really changed the outcome of the second World War." The Canadian soldiers were part of a group of approximately one hundred fifty thousand troops that landed on the beaches.
"We suffered significant casualties," adds Falk. He says nearly eleven hundred Canadian troops were injured, and 359 were killed.
"It really is a historic day that we need to honour those that fought for our country, fought for freedom, for democracy for protecting the rule of law," says Falk. "This is just one way that we can commemorate the people that made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom."
As part of Friday's ceremony, former RCMP officer Glenn Syme sprinkled sand from Juno Beach on the cenotaph.
Duncan says the Steinbach Legion has a tradition where every June 6 they will send out members to visit as many graves as possible of veterans buried in the area. Duncan notes there are forty-one buried locally. He and Syme plan to visit at least twenty-one of those.
Duncan notes it's difficult to say whether D-Day is losing its significance, in the eyes of locals, as the years go on. Though he says there seems to be more and more awareness of Remembrance Day.
Fri, Jun 28, 1:00 PM
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