www.1914-1918.ca

From the website:

"At sunset November 4th through to sunrise November 11th, this site will present a vigil commemorating the 68,000 Canadians who lost their lives in WWI. The names of the 68,000 war dead will be projected over a week of nights onto the National War Memorial in Ottawa, buildings in other regions of Canada and onto the side of Canada House in Trafalgar Square in London, England.

Please join us for this important occasion.

Commencing October 20th, this site will provide search functions allowing Canadians to find information about their WWI veteran and the night and time their name will be projected."

My Grandmother's first cousin died at Vimy Ridge so will be among those honoured but his name will show up at 2:21 AM on November 10 so unlikely that any family will see it but I suppose we could wait in Tim Horton's across from Toronto City Hall.

According to an article in the paper yesterday, the Brits are charging $26,000 Cdn VAT for staging it on the side of Canada House.

ttt

I went to the "opening" of this at city hall after work yesterday.

If you're in TO and plan to go, the names are high up on the inside wall of the east tower of city hall (I had to have them pointed out to me).

Charming:

WAR GRAVES COMMISSION OUTRAGE AT WAR MEMORIAL THEFT

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is deeply shocked by the theft of a number of bronze name panels from the war memorial at Manchester (Philips Park) Cemetery.

The panels, bearing a substantial number of names of servicemen who died during both world wars, were stolen at the weekend.

Peter Francis, spokesperson for the Commission said, “Thefts of this nature have sadly been on the increase because of the global increase in price of raw materials.

However, it absolutely beggars belief that as we approach Remembrance Day, someone could stoop so low as to steal a memorial commemorating those brave men and women who gave their lives for us during two world wars. The Commission is deeply shocked and distressed by this news.

If anyone has any information which might lead to the recovery of the panels, I would urge them to come forward and speak to the authorities.”

For further information, please contact Peter Francis on 01628 507163 or [email protected]

Oh Sally, I feel the pain. Either last Veterans Day (as we call it) or the one the year before last criminals stole the beautiful bronze plaque off of the memorial listing all the men from Vallejo, CA who had died in previous wars. This happened just a few days before Veterans day. Heartbreaking.

Hi LoveItaly - shameful!

Helly Sally. Shameful indeed.

I meant to post this early this morning but did not get a chance to do so. So I will now.

This was written by your Canadian Pilot Officer John Gillespie who was killed in 1941 at the age of 19 while serving with the Royal Canadian Air Force.

HIGH FLIGHT

Oh, I have slipped the surly bond of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter - silvered wings.
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
you have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlite silence:
hov'ring there.
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
my eager craft through footless
halls of air.
Up, the long delirious,
burning blue
I've topped the windswept
heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew.
And, while the silent lifting
mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity
of space
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

LoveItaly - one of my all-time favourite poems.

And here's a marvelous little video to go with it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LvE6plMwa8

Thanks Loveitaly - I happen to have that poem framed in my home.

Used it in my Dad's obituary. He was a Halifax pilot in WWII and it seemed just so

I could quote almost half the poem -- the rest has dimmed in the 40 years since we learned it in school.

Still find it exhilarating... and moving, of course.

Hello dear Fodorites, many decades ago I read this poem by your John Gillespie and wrote it in a notebook where I record writings I want to always remember.

My brother-in-law was quite a hero in the USAF and became a Lt. General (3 star). On one of his birthdays I sent him this poem along with a birthday card. He was not aware of the poem and told me how much it meant to him. He knew a lot of your Canadian pilots by the way.

Knickerbocker, it too was used in my brother-in-law's obituary as his two grown children knew how much it meant to him.

For me the last sentence "Put out my hand and touched the face of God" has always been very special.

God bless all our veterans, they are all heros