Volume 22 www.legionnl.com 23 Newfoundland Labrador Command continued... and we are proud to have it on display in front of our Town Hall.” As fellow veterans of Afghanistan and current members of the Canadian Forces looked on, Lieut. Col. Strong spoke as a living embodiment of the town’s heritage referenced by the mayor. “The morning of 9/11, I sat in my parents living room in Manuels, just a few minutes from here, and watched the events of the day unfold,” Strong recalled. “I had just finished infantry officer training a few weeks earlier and was home on leave. My mother asked, ‘Is this going to impact you? Naively, I said that I didn’t think so. But in just a few months I’d be standing on the airfield in Kandahar. Fast forward to today and I stand here to remember lost comrades.” Around the time that Wayne Miller and his team had coordinated the installation of the town’s new cenotaph in 2015, Strong said, he casually mentioned to him that it would be nice to have some kind of monument dedicated to the 158 Canadian soldiers who lost their lives in Afghanistan. “As I walked around the monument, honestly, I was thinking about a small plaque or marker of some sort,” said Strong. “Little did I know that Wayne and Kathy had much bigger plans than a simple plaque. Instead, they felt a more fitting memorial would be an eightwheeled, 18 tonne armoured infantry fighting vehicle similar to what was used on the battlefields of Afghanistan – one of only 33 such monuments across the country to honour those killed during Canada’s longest war where 40,000 had served. And I am so very thankful to them, and the town of CBS, that they had far greater vision for this poignant memorial than I. To Wayne, Kathy and the Town of CBS – I can only say thank you.” Strong allowed that some people were concerned that the sight of such a large military vehicle outside the Town Hall might look too aggressive, or menacing, or serve as a “too direct reminder of the machinery of war.” Those are all valid feelings, he admitted. “But that is not what I see or feel,” said Strong. “I see the safety and protection it afforded soldiers. I feel a soldier’s comfort when mounting up after a long patrol in the sun. I see the security and feel the reassurance it provided when its guns pounded the enemy’s position. And I feel the pride that we felt while doing our part. But most importantly, I see and feel the presence of lost comrades – friends – and all those who died serving each other and Canada. They were the best I’ve ever known, and the best Canada had to offer.” The purpose of monuments such as the LAV III is not to glorify war, Strong explained. “You only need ask a veteran to know that there is no glory there,” he added. Rather, such monuments honour the dedication to duty and sacrifice willingly made for the benefit of others, he said. “That is what we remember and what we can never forget,” said Strong. “I have lived most of my life in CBS and am happy to now raise my family here – a place that so highly values the service and sacrifice of the military and places such significance and commitment on remembrance. To all residents of CBS – thank you. I want to thank you for taking a brief moment to remember those who are no longer with us. As a veteran of Afghanistan, I can think of no more fitting tribute to the many who were lost than to honour their memory by simply saying, ‘We will remember them.’ I know following my service in Afghanistan, those four simple words have come to mean so very much. And let us never fail to fully support the families of those who never returned and those who returned and are never the same. They are the ones who continue to suffer, to struggle most with the loss of loved ones in every way. It is our duty to honour and care for them just as we honour their fallen loved ones. This must be our solemn vow to those who gave all.” Following the playing of The Last Post and two minutes of silence, the veterans and guests held a special wreath laying ceremony, one for every Newfoundlander who died in Afghanistan, young people in their early and mid20s and in one case 30s. That list includes Sgt. Donald Lucas of St. John’s, Pvt. Kevin Kennedy of St. Lawrence, Sgt. Craig Gillam of Stephenville Crossing, Warrant Officer Richard Nolan of Mount Pearl, Cpl. Brian Pinksen of Sop’s Arm, Cpl. Jamie Murphy of Conception Harbour, Capt. Francis Paul of Badger, Pvt. Justin Jones of Baie Verte, Cpl. Kenneth O’Quinn of Goose Bay, Cpl. Stephen Bouzane of Springdale, and Sgt. Vaughn Ingram of Burgeo.
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