Greetings.
Last Tuesday, on May 4, we celebrated end of the Canadian campaign which ended with the liberation of Holland in 1945, as the war in Europe drew to a close.
On Friday, May 8 we celebrated the end of the Battle of the Atlantic, and the Victory in Europe Day, generally known as VE Day, a day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender of its armed Forces in 1945.
In honour of the 75th anniversary, bands and pipers around the world played at 3 p.m. local time.
Here in Trail, members of the our band played two tunes – ‘When the Battle is O’er’ written to commemorate the end of World War I; and a new tune composed for the day ‘VE 75’ in commemoration of the event marking the end of World War II in Europe.
(We were still engaged in the Pacific war with Japan, marked by VJ Day, August 15)
Due to the respect for the social distancing still in effect, some of the band played at their home, and I played at the Cenotaph attended by a small colour party of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 11.
Collectively, we continue to remember the sacrifice and service of members of our community in the quest for the end of war, and peace in our time.
Lest we forget.
Respectfully,
J. Gordon Titsworth