The Royal Canadian Legion, Field Marshal Alexander Branch #11 hosted a Remembrance Day Ceremony at the Cenotaph in Vermilion on November 11. Following the singing of, ‘O’Canada’, a moment of silence and the laying of the wreaths, dignitaries and guests met at the Legion to continue the ceremony. Legion President, Garry Zayac, welcomed everyone; and Capt Doug Jordan, Commanding Officer for the 2645 Vermilion Army Cadets, gave a salute to the Fallen. “Today we pause in grateful remembrance; victory came at a heavy price. Today we take time to honour the thousands of Albertans who had the bravery to serve and the men and women who are now serving; today and always – we will remember them,” said Mayor Caroline McAuley.
Reverend, Aubrey Bell gave the Pastor’s Sermon and said, “France and Belgium were laced with railway tracks, and when bombed, they had to be repaired. Many of the repairmen were Canadian as they had railroaded in the toughest times. While being shot at, they couldn’t shoot back. There were also Forestry troops with Canadians as well as horses and the men to handle them in the Transport Corps. I still have the letter from my uncle saying, he only got shot three times.” Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps WWII Veteran, Ellwood Hill, attended the ceremony, and according to his son, Don Hill, he served with the forces that landed in Normandy on D-Day. “He stayed in France for about a month until they pushed the Germans out, and then moved on to Holland, Belgium and Germany serving as a medic. He looked after wounded soldiers as well as many wounded civilians. He often gave some of his rations to children as the Dutch families were starving. One of his brothers Wendel, also served but they seldom saw each other being in different units,” said Don Hill. Don went on to say that his father had made many friends amongst the Dutch people, and they even stay in touch. When he returned from WWII, he served as a Baptist pastor and retired in his early 60’s moving back to the family farm south of Vermilion. The 98-year old veteran and his wife of 71 years now reside in Mundare. Surrounded by a lot of family, Ellwood enjoyed attending the ceremony and many from the community appreciated seeing him in his original uniform.
