U of C remembers

By Вen Li

On Tue., Oct. 29 an estimated 1,000 University of Calgary students, staff and faculty signed a 15 by 15 foot piece of what will become the largest Canadian flag in history. The completed flag, to measure 72 feet by 144 feet, will be assembled on November 10 at Parliament Hill in Ottawa to commemorate Remembrance Day.

“I think it’s a very important cause. My grandfather was in World War II,” said fifth-year International Relations student Kathleen Phelan. “I’ve always tried to be involved in Remembrance Day.”

Phelan, a member of the Political Science Association which organized the signing on campus, will represent the U of C in Ottawa. In total, 52 high schools and post-secondary institutions across Canada are participating in the project, entitled “We Will Always Remember.”

“WWAR is a project designed to cultivate awareness among youth about the sacrifices Canadian soldiers have made, and continue to make, in order to preserve our freedom and integrity,” said WWAR Project Director Peter Schiefke, a Concordia University student. “This depiction of our national flag will not only instill a sense of pride in all who bare witness to it, but it will serve as a tangible symbol of our endless gratitude and respect to those who paid the ultimate price for us, for Canada, and for the freedoms we enjoy today.”

Veterans appreciate the effort put in by the students in the project.

“I think it’s a heck of an idea, I really do,” said Ross Myers, first vice-president of 275 Legion in Calgary. “I hope it creates an interest in what the 11th of November means to people.

“I hope this is a way to get people to recognize the sacrifices of our soldiers,” continued Myers. “We can’t forget those Canadians that fell in the past or the past will repeat itself. We don’t want war.”