'It was very eye-opening': High school students, staff and veterans mark Remembrance Day with service

Students, staff and several veterans came together at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School for a traditional Remembrance Day service on Friday, a day ahead of the official ceremony at Windsor’s Cenotaph.

“We all have a responsibility,” said principal Laura Beltran.

“We can't just always take. We have to give back. How do we do that? We can do that with kindness. We can do that with respect. We can do that with humility. That's what we owe to our veterans.”

Second World War Dieppe veteran Charles Davis, 101, was among those in attendance.

“I'm very grateful to be here,” Davis said, while urging students to get a good education. “It's more important today than it ever was.”

“If you want to make a better Canada, they got to be a better Canadian.”

Davis said he also intends to be at Saturday’s service to lay a wreath.

“To pay respect for all thousands Canadians over the years (who) have given up their lives to have a free Canada today, which is, I believe the best country in the world,” he said.

• IN PICTURES: St. Joseph’s Catholic High School marks Remembrance Day

Students, staff and several veterans came together at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School for a traditional Remembrance Day service in Windsor, Ont. on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Meanwhile, a new survey suggests Canadians are increasingly making an effort to attend official Remembrance Day Services on Nov. 11 this year according to a new Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Historica Canada.

It said Canadians consider Remembrance Day to be as relevant today as when it first began, indicating the vast majority (87 per cent) think that more should be done to educate young people about Canada’s military history and involvement in global conflicts.

“No one's telling them that they need to go to Cenotaph, no one saying that they need to participate in the service,” said Afghanistan veteran and LaSalle deputy mayor, Mike Akpata. “The hope for me is that after having met the senior veterans is that they want to participate and they understand why it's important.”

The Ipsos poll also revealed eight in 10 Canadians feel it’s important to attend Remembrance Day ceremonies now while there are still Second World War veterans present.

“We're losing those that built the foundation of this country and my biggest fear is always that once their story is gone, some of the unbelievable feats that they did will be deemed to be unbelievable,” Akpata told CTV News.

He said students today have the ability to make a difference in a similar way the young men and women in uniform did decades ago.

“They have met a Second World War Normandy veteran,” Akpata explained. “That attaches them to those black and white pictures. That attaches them to the sacrifice of those that didn't come back.”

According to Grade 10 student Mark Iusan, Remembrance Day services are important reminders of freedom.

Students, staff and several veterans came together at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School for a traditional Remembrance Day service in Windsor, Ont. on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Students, staff and several veterans came together at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School for a traditional Remembrance Day service in Windsor, Ont. on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

“It’s a time where we reflect on the people who fought for our rights, the people who are fighting for our freedom,” Isuan said. “Because of all of our veterans who fought for our freedom, you have the right to do or to not do.”

Fellow grade 10 student Lilly Gilbert agreed.

“I thought that it was beautiful and it taught me a lot about Canadian history that I hadn't been told about before,” Gilbert said.

“It was very eye opening to see the veterans and to see the families and to learn about their experiences was just something that really like touched my soul. It was beautiful.”

Grade 12 student Anthony Hoang, who is also a member of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets, said hearing the stories during the ceremony was extraordinary.

“Just hearing those experiences, it's truly something that opens up the possibilities and the perspectives of the world around us,” he said.

"Being able to wear this uniform and live here, call myself Canadian, is an opportunity and a privilege in itself. The opportunity I've been given through the sacrifices of many of those before me, it's a time to be grateful for being here today and being able to call myself Canadian."

Silver Cross mother Theresa Charbonneau was also in attendance and believes the message of sacrifice was received by students.

“Every year I swear it's gonna get easier, and every year it doesn’t,” Charbonneau said.

Charbonneau's son Cpl. Andrew Grenon attended St. Joseph's before he was killed on Sept. 3, 2008, while nearing the end of his second tour of duty in Afghanistan, noting it means a lot to her to see students’ appreciation.

“For the entire ceremony, which was long, you could have heard a pin drop that tells you what these students think and what they know,” she said.

Students, staff and several veterans came together at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School for a traditional Remembrance Day service in Windsor, Ont. on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)