HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2008-07-17, Page 7THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 17, 2008. PAGE 7.Area couples take 10-day military tourBy Jo-Ann McDonaldReturning from an absolutelyfantastic trip overseas are four localcouples. Jim and Anne Bosman,Maurice and Mary Douma, Lavernand Joan Clark and Joe and LynSteffler were part of the group of 32
that journeyed on the 10-day
Military Tour of France, Belgium
and Holland organized by the
Bosman’s daughter, Tracy
McLennan entitled Huron
Remembers.
The group departed on the night of
June 29 and landed in Paris at
Charles De Gaulle Airport following
the seven-and-a-half-hour flight in
the morning. They enjoyed a two-
hour panoramic tour of Paris and saw
sights, including the Place de la
Bastille, les Champs Elysees and
Notre Dame Cathedral and more.
The next day it was off to the town of
Versailles for Canada Day and a tour
of the Chateau de Versailles Palace
and the town.
They returned to Paris and had a
tour of the Eiffel Tower and saw a
spectacular view of the City of Light
from the famous landmark.
In the early evening they went on a
one-hour narrated cruise of the River
Seine.
Following dinner at the Monte
Carlo Restaurant, some of the group
returned to the Eiffel Tower by
subway to view the Tower displayed
in its blue and gold lights.
Day four of the excursion saw
them leave Paris and journey to the
city of Caen. They stopped at the
Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War
cemetery in Cintheaux where they
found the grave markers of a
McLean and Graham of the Seaforth
area. They continued on to the
nearby Canadian Military Cemetery
at Beny-Sur-Mer where 2,049
headstones of fallen Canadian
soldiers are found including Robert
Papple, Gord Nichil, Art Frasier and
Roy Pearce were found.
They proceeded to Courseulles-Sur-Mer and the Juno Beach Centrewhere they enjoyed a tour of theCentre. Anne Bosman’s uncle, DaveHastings fought with the CanadianScottish regiment at Juno and shereports bringing back sand and rocks
from the Beach in remembrance.
On day five, it was on to Dieppe,
where the assault operation in
August 1942 claimed over 3,000
Canadian lives. The raid, named
Operation Jubilee was a near-
suicidal series of landings and
attacks up sheer cliffs and well-
fortified cliff faces. Anne reports that
the cliffs were unbelievable and says
it’s no wonder so many lives were
lost.
They had a two-hour tour of the
landing beaches and a visit to the
Cemetery of Virtue-Dieppe
Canadian War Cemetery. They also
visited the Etaples Military where
they found the markers of Tom
Penhale and John Bullard, a relative
of Judy Lee’s family.
On day six, they travelled to
Beamont-Hamal, a well preserved
site where the Newfoundland
Regiment was decimated at the
Battle of the Somme in 1916. A
bronze caribou stands guard over the
most moving commemorations of
the First World War.
They stopped and visited the
Courcelette Canadian Memorial and
the Regina Trench, where the
Canadian Fourth Division was
instrumental in its capture from the
Germans. It was then on to Canadian
National Vimy Memorial where
Anne and Mary Douma placed a
wreath on behalf of the Brussels
Legion, near the name of Sergeant
Norman Arthur McGuire, a Brussels
native whose name can be found in
connection with the Brussels
Presbyterian Church.
A surprise to a couple from Exeter
on the trip, was the arrival of their
two sons, one of whom played the
bagpipes, in memory and in respectof the fallen Canadian soldiers.The group toured the tunnels andridge surrounding the Memorial thatis so significant to all Canadians.The Memorial is gotten to bytravelling a rough, dirt road,
surrounded now by farmers’ fields
and crops, but upon nearing the site,
immaculately kept grounds and
lawns greet the thousands of visitors.
The next day, it was off to Ypres,
Belgium. Enroute they stopped to
visit the impressive St. Julien
Memorial, which stands like a
sentinel over those who died during
the heroic stand of Canadians during
the first gas attacks of the First World
War.
The group then walked to the In
Flanders Field Museum at Ypres.
That evening, they walked to the
Menin Gate Memorial and St.
George’s Church, where they
attended a special Last Post
Ceremony commemorating the 80th
anniversary of the Battles of Ypres
Salient.
Every evening a commemorative
service is held to honour the memory
of the thousands of soldiers who
marched out of the Merlin Gate
towards the Front during the First
World War.
Attending this anniversary service
was the Crown Prince of Belgium
and Government representatives
from Canada, Australia, New
Zealand and other countries. It was
at this service that Mary and Anne
laid the second Brussels Legion
wreath. Wreaths were also laid from
Seaforth and Exeter Legions by
members of the group.
The Last Post was played by a
group of four or five pipers and crépe
paper poppies floated down from
openings in the roof. Anne reports it
was a very moving experience.
On day eight of this memorable
trip, it was off to Antwerp and a tour
of a Diamond Museum. They
continued onto Groesbeek CanadianWar Cemetery located nearNijmegen, where 2,338 Canadiansare buried. Among them, were firstcousins of Joe Steffler and where hisfather fought. Tracy sang O DannyBoy for Joe and Lynn while there.
They continued on to Amsterdam
where they spent the night and
enjoyed the city tour the next
morning. They toured the famous
Anne Frank House and had time for
personal sightseeing before going on
a canal cruise of the city. The final
day of the trip was a flight from
Amsterdam to London, England and
Heathrow Airport, then to PearsonInternational Airport, Canada.The image that stands out in mosteveryone’s mind, is the pristinewhiteness of the cemetery markers,standing in perfect rows. Thecemeteries are looked after by the
Commonwealth, and the lawns and
flowerbeds are immaculately kept,
with beautiful flowers, grass like
smooth carpet and cared for with the
utmost respect. When visitors arrive,
the groundskeepers quietly
disappear, so as not to disturb the
solemn memories and reflections of
the visitors.
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Placing community mailboxes in
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difficult than Huron East council
first anticipated.
After the post office in
Egmondville was closed by Canada
Post, customers were given
mailboxes in the Seaforth offices,
boxes normally given in exchange
for payment, free of charge, until an
alternative was found.
While Canada Post has been
working to find a location that
would appease the municipality, the
county and local residents, several
citizens were in attendance at
council’s July 8 meeting to express
their disapproval with the most
recent proposals.
While there were some issues
regarding who Canada Post had
contacted, they are required to
contact the adjacent landowner, two
citizens in particular had several
safety concerns associated with
the proposed locations of the
mailboxes.
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Stephan Gingras who had concerns
over the safety of the initial location
of the mailboxes.
He said he was concerned about
driver visibility for he and his
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their driveways, as well as concerns
over residents parking in his
driveway.
Council informed Gingras that a
new location had already been
chosen and that his concerns had
been heard. However, where the
boxes were to be moved didn’t sit
too well with Jim Etue, who was
also in attendance.
There were suggestions that the
community mailboxes be moved
closer to the Kippen store on Hwy. 4
Kippen Road.
This, however, would bring Huron
County into the discussion, as it is a
county road.
This decision came from council,
as deputy-mayor Bernie MacLellan
said, because council didn’t want to
force the cost of a post office
mailbox on the ratepayers. There
was also the solution of moving all
of the mail out to the local storage
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While the decision is to be made
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sympathized with the citizens in
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By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen