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In 2005, to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the end of the Second World War, Canadian celebrities spoke about the meaning of remembrance as part of the Stories of Remembrance Campaign, a project of CanWest News Service (now Postmedia News), the Dominion Institute (now Historica Canada) and Veterans Affairs Canada. This article is reprinted from that campaign.

Sir Peter Warren, naval officer (b c 1703; d at Dublin, Ire 29 July 1752). He commanded the Royal Navy at the 1745 siege of LOUISBOURG, where he was made governor. Warren recommended the deportation of Acadians and the fortification of Chebucto (Halifax) as early as 1739.

John Nickinson, soldier, actor-manager (b at London, Eng 2 Jan 1808; d at Cincinnati, Ohio 9 Feb 1864). He stimulated the development of theatre in Toronto and was father of an acting family.

Sir Howard Douglas, soldier, author, colonial administrator (b at Gosport, Eng 23 Jan 1776; d at Tunbridge Wells, Eng 9 Nov 1861). The son of a naval officer, Douglas finished military academy in time to see action in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars in Canada, Spain and Holland.

Thomas Carleton, British army officer, lieutenant-governor of NB (b in Ire c 1735; d at Ramsgate, Eng 2 Feb 1817), brother of Guy CARLETON, Baron Dorchester.

​Ernest Adolphe Côté, MBE, soldier, civil servant and diplomat (born 12 June 1913 in Edmonton, Alberta; died 25 February 2015 in Ottawa, Ontario).

Edward Jessup, Loyalist, soldier and founder of Prescott (born December 1735 in Stamford, Connecticut; died 3 February 1816 in Prescott, Upper Canada [Ontario]).

John Lambert, British army officer, military figure in the WAR OF 1812 (b 1772; d at Weston House, Thames Ditton, Surrey, England, 14 Sept 1847). The son of a naval officer, John Lambert was commissioned as an ensign in the 1st Foot Guards in 1791.

John Burgoyne, army officer (b in Eng 1722; d at London, Eng 3 Aug 1792). A distinguished cavalry officer and public figure, Burgoyne arrived in Québec in 1776 with large reinforcements, and served during the successful campaign of that year.

Solomon Van Rensselaer, military general (b at Greenbush, Rensselaer County, NY, 6 Aug 1774; d near Albany, NY, 23 April 1852). Solomon Van Rensselaer was the son of Jeremiah Van Rensselaer, a Revolutionary War general, and a member of a powerful Dutch patroon family.

"When I advanced, I could hear the Germans speaking. We had advanced too quickly and we were forced to hide in the woods. We stayed there for two days and one night. We couldn’t move at all."

See below for Mr. Blanchard's entire testimony.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"They wanted to give a Christmas dinner to service personnel. So that’s the sort of thing that, you know, it really means a lot."

See below for Ms. Melton's entire testimony.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Samuel Johannes Holland, surveyor, cartographer, military engineer (b at Nijmegen, Netherlands 1728; d at Québec C, LC 28 Dec 1801).

"But my great wish is that never again will there ever be cause again to disrupt and sacrifice so many lives, young and old."

See below for Mr. Scammell's entire testimony.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Sir William B. Thornton, soldier (b at Ireland 1778 or 1779; d at Greenford, Middlesex, England, April 1840). William Thornton entered the British army as an ensign in the 89th Regiment of Foot in March 1796.

Louis Levi Oakes (also known as Tahagietagwa), Mohawk soldier, war hero, steelworker, public works supervisor (born 23 January 1925 in St. Regis, QC; died 28 May 2019 in Snye, QC). During the Second World War, Oakes was a code talker for the United States Army. Code talkers used their Indigenous languages to encode radio messages to prevent the enemy from understanding them. When he passed away at age 94, Oakes was the last Mohawk code talker. (See also Cree Code Talkers and Indigenous Peoples and the World Wars.)

Harjit Singh Sajjan, PC, OMM, MSM, CD, soldier, policeman, politician, Minister of National Defence 2015–21, Minister of International Development 2021–present (born 6 September 1970, in Bombeli, Hoshiarpur, India). Harjit Sajjan enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces at age 19 and joined the Vancouver Police Department in 1999. He served for 11 years and became a detective. He also served three tours of duty in Afghanistan, where he was hailed as Canada’s “best single intelligence asset.” Sajjan rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonel and became the first Sikh Canadian to command an Armed Forces regiment. He was elected as a Liberal MP for Vancouver South in 2015. He was Minister of National Defence for nearly six years — one of the longest tenures in the country’s history. He has been Minister of International Development since 2021.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Elizabeth “Betty” Dimock’s great ambition during the Second World War was to become a nurse. She registered in the South African army to treat wounded soldiers from the North African Campaign. Read and listen to Dimock’s story below.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.