As part of a cross-country program called No Stone Left Alone, about 40 Grade 8 students from Jasper Junior/Senior High School (JJSHS) gathered at the Jasper Cemetery, Nov. 7, to place poppies at the graves of 69 veterans.聽
Sisters, Nalani and Keandra Gruys were two of those students.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 really important to do this every year so we don鈥檛 forget,鈥� Keandra said.
鈥淧lus it鈥檚 good to show respect for all these people who fought or died for us,鈥� Nalani added. 鈥淚 think our lives would be a lot different today if we didn鈥檛 have those people who were willing to go to war for us.鈥�
Before the students spread out around the small cemetery, a brief ceremony was held.
Coun. Brian Nesbitt, who spoke on behalf of the municipality, highlighted the importance of the annual event.
鈥淲e love the idea of connecting Jasper鈥檚 youth with people who have bravely and selflessly served our country in the armed services,鈥� Nesbitt said. 鈥淎s you know this is closely tied to Remembrance Day, which pays homage to not only the people who sacrificed themselves in wars, but also the people who have served during peacetime and in peacekeeping missions around the world.鈥�
Rev. David Prowse then invited the students to gather round as he read a few excerpts from his prayer book before taking in a moment of silence.
Standing among lines of tombstones, the students then proceeded to recite 鈥淚n Flanders Fields鈥� in both French and English.
This is the fourth year Grade 8 students from JJSHS have participated in the No Stone Left Alone program. The initiative started in Edmonton in 2011 through the efforts of Maureen Bianchini-Purvis, who had laid a poppy on the grave of her mother, a veteran, for years.
Since then the program has spread across nine provinces, and this year about 6,800 students from 85 schools laid poppies for more than 44,500 veterans.
鈥淲e had friends who started doing this in Edmonton and we wanted to help them help it grow. We picked the Grade 8 students specifically because we thought it was a good age鈥攖hey鈥檙e old enough to be focused and really understand the event,鈥� said Jasperite Mike Day, who is responsible for starting the local event in 2012.
鈥淧lus I don鈥檛 think students are aware of just how many veterans we have,鈥� Day added. 鈥淓vents like this give a little more recognition to military services.鈥�
Standing beside Day was Sue Henderson, manager of the Jasper Royal Canadian Legion. She added was surprised by the amount of veterans who lay at the Jasper Cemetery.
鈥淚t鈥檚 such a small cemetery so when you look around and see all these veterans it really makes you go 鈥榳ow鈥�.鈥�
Kayla Byrne [email protected]
