By Mike Renzella
The Haldimand Press
DUNNVILLE—Flags of Remembrance, a project that aims to pay tribute to Canadian military veterans and first responders who lost their lives in the line of duty, will be on display this fall at Wingfield Park in Dunnville.
The display is being spearheaded by a team of four, including Veteran Services Officer Brent O’Connor of the Dunnville Legion and Navy veteran Larry W. Brodie, who moved out to Dunnville after retiring last year. Brodie first met O’Connor during Remembrance Day ceremonies, where the two got to talking and decided to work together on the flag project. They were joined in the endeavour by Debbie VanderHeide and Steve Almas, both veterans themselves. The overall project is presented by Veteran’s Voices of Canada (VV), run by Founding Executive Director Al Cameron.
“When we started this, Al interviewed my grandfather, Peter Brodie. He was a north Nova Scotia highlander. He was in the Navy, my uncle Pete was in the Navy, we were all military people. We come from a long line of veterans,” said Brodie, who worked as a stoker in the engine rooms of Navy ships along the east and west coasts between 1981-88.
The interview is for a book that Cameron is working on, which will chronicle untold stories from veterans of all walks of life to create a tapestry of unique Canadian military stories.
VV of Canada was founded in 2005 and Cameron explained, “VV of Canada honours our past and present veterans through historical documentation, tributes, and displays across Canada throughout the year.”
In 2014, Cameron launched Flags of Remembrance through VV.
“It’s 128 Canada flags, full size. Each flag represents 1,000 soldiers who have lost their life from the Boer War to now,” explained O’Connor, who noted that neither VV nor Flags of Remembrance are official Legion events.
When O’Connor initially heard about the flags, he thought it could be a good way to add to already existing military tributes in Dunnville.
“We do the banners in town, we have great community support for that, in addition to our poppies…. The amount of history that’s within our community, not just Dunnville but Hagersville, Jarvis, there’s a lot of military history here,” he said, noting the pilots trained in Haldimand before being sent overseas during WWII. “I thought this would be great to bring to the community. It’s putting us on the map as well.”
Cameron’s vision for Flags of Remembrance is to have the tribute take place in 128 places across the country with a rich military history. For 2021, there are six locations across Canada participating: two in Alberta, one each in Quebec and Nova Scotia, and two in Ontario, with Windsor and Dunnville participating this year.
Following a suggestion from O’Connor, this year the flags on display will include an Indigenous flag for the first time, which will pay tribute to those from the First Nations communities across Canada that have served in the Canadian Military or worked as a first responder in a local community.
DUNNVILLE—A closer look at the plaque, available to sponsors for $250, to be included in the display, with raised funds being used to benefit the local veteran community. —Haldimand Press photo by Mike Renzella.
Each flag will also come with a plaque. Sponsorship of a flag and plaque is $250. The sponsor will be able to choose who the plaque is donated to, whether it be a military veteran or a first responder who lost their life in the line of duty. Plaques can be made out to either one individual or one group.
“Although we are not a third-party fundraiser for other charities, we have donated over $30,000 to other charities since we began our Flags of Remembrance initiative in 2014,” said Cameron. Brodie added, “This is strictly for veterans … and that’s what the money is going to be used for.”
O’Connor and Brodie spoke about the importance of honouring modern-day veterans and letting them know that help is available for them. According to O’Connor, a lot of modern vets return from service and go into seclusion. Flags of Remembrance is a way to fundraise for them and honour the sacrifices of those lost in the line of duty, but also those left behind to deal with the often-traumatic impacts of prolonged military service.
Those interested in sponsoring a flag and naming a plaque can contact O’Connor at 905-719-8506, Brodie at 905-512-0761, VanderHeide at 905-818-4034, or Almas at 905-746-8343.
“This year is especially special,” said O’Connor. “It’s the 20th anniversary of 9/11. We’re putting our flags up on September 11.”
The flags will be raised at noon on September 11 at Wingfield Park and will remain on display there until November 12.
