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Red Deer pays tribute to fallen soldiers

Two Remembrance Day ceremonies took place in Red Deer Sunday
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Korean War veteran Don Holloway (middle) was escorted to Veterans’ Park cenotaph to lay a wreath and salute at the Remembrance Day ceremony Sunday in Red Deer. Photo by Mamta Lulla/Advocate staff

Someone once asked a Korean War veteran why Canadians pay tribute to wars every after year on Remembrance Day.

Don Holloway said Canadians don’t pay tribute to wars, but the sacrifices that people made to end the wars. The local veteran was at the Remembrance Day ceremony at Veterans’ Park in Red Deer speaking to hundreds of people in attendance.

“You pay tribute to the people who tried to stop it, people who gave their all and made the supreme sacrifice that’s why you have a Remembrance,” said the Red Deer resident.

Holloway served in the Korean War for a year in 1953.

“If you don’t remember the bad things that happened, it will come again, and we wouldn’t even know it so it’s good to pay homage today.”

This Remembrance Day is a special one, he said, noting it’s been a 100 years since the end of the First World War.

“One hundred years ago, an armistice was signed bringing an end to the First World War. Throughout that war, and even for years afterwards, it was said the war was to end all wars,” he said.

“But that wasn’t quite so, as we know there have been many wars since, and they still go on.”

The ceremony hosted by Korean War Veterans’ Association brought back memories for Holloway.

“You forget the bad ones (memories), you remember the good ones.”

He said he was “impressed” by the turnout at the cenotaph Sunday.

Not far from the downtown ceremony, a larger crowd gathered at the Servus Arena where the Red Deer Legion hosted its ceremony.

Local veteran and a retired Royal Canadian Air Force member, Allan Gooding honoured all the veterans at the ceremony with a speech.

“Teach the young how important this is,” said retired Capt.

Gooding, a jet fighter pilot during the Cold War, was behind the launch of a veteran recognition program introduced at the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre in October.

The program allows current and past members of all service branches, including police, to identify their service during admitting.

For those wishing to be recognized through the program, a poppy magnet is placed on their in-room whiteboard for the duration of their stay.

“So everybody will know that’s a veteran,” he said Sunday, referring to the program.

Whiteboards are communication tools between patients, families and health care staff. The program is expected to be rolled out throughout Alberta Health Services’ central zone, and hopefully, across Alberta.

During his speech Sunday, he also paid tribute to family members of veterans, who provide much-needed help and support.

“The families deal with it, sometimes it’s not pretty those veterans saw things that nobody should ever see and it impacts them and their families for life,” he said.

“I needed people to know families of veterans and their support is so incredibly important.”



mamta.lulla@reddeeradvocate.com

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Many veterans were at the Servus Arena in Red Deer for a Remembrance Day ceremony Sunday. Photo by Mamta Lulla/Advocate staff
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Local veteran and a retired Royal Canadian Air Force member, Allan Gooding honoured all veterans at the Servus Arena ceremony hosted by the Red Deer Legion. Photo by Mamta Lulla/Advocate staff