As Remembrance Day approaches, the group No Stone Left Alone will once again seek to honour veterans with symbols of respect being placed on their tombstones.
An example of their work is that after a researcher located the final resting place of George Loyie, a WWII Métis veteran who was buried in Lloydminster in 1951, they were able to lay a poppy on the headstone for the first time in 2020.
Amy Hrynchuk, site rep for NSLA says they will be laying poppies this Saturday Nov. 5 at the Lloydminster Cemetery. Hrynchuk says this is the eighth year coming to Lloydminster for the ceremony and recalls the sentiment of laying a poppy at the headstone of the Métis veteran.
“It brings it more into light. You know he was buried here. It didn’t have the headstone, but he was never forgotten. They went through the process; got him the headstone, and now he is even more visible to those who are maybe just walking around the cemetery or come across this story – it becomes more real.”
Groups participating this year include Ecole St Thomas, the 186th Air Cadets, Lloydminster Sparks and Pathfinders as well as members of the Lloydminster Legion. MLAs Roswell and Young, as well as Mayor Aalbers will also attend the remembrance ceremony.
Hrynchuk says it’s important for young people to participate in activities to recall the sacrifices made by veterans.
“It’s more than just them sitting in an auditorium at school, going through the motions of, ‘hey, do we get out of class – we get to sit in an assembly; it’s something different.’ But now they are actually going out, they are seeing the headstones – they are seeing names. And they are able to, if they want, to look into that person and learn more about them and their service as well.”
The ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m.