A small and subdued Remembrance Day ceremony was held at King’s Square in Saint John on Wednesday.
COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the large event normally held at TD Station.
Saint John Remembrance Day Committee chair Bernard Cormier said many people were disappointed the large ceremony couldn’t take place.
“People also understand that we are in the middle of a pandemic. Saint Johners have been so fortunate more so than other places in the province because we follow the rules,” Cormier said following the ceremony on Wednesday.
Local spectators are keeping a respectful distance from the official ceremony. People are not encouraged to attend this year. pic.twitter.com/dHiDmYDQxY
— Tamara Steele (she/her) 🇨🇦 (@tamarasteele1) November 11, 2020
City of Saint John Manager and Major-General (ret’d) John Collin represented the fallen soldiers at the ceremony.
Collin spent 35 years in the military including time in Germany and the Netherlands during the cold war.
“I was also with the first rotation in Bosnia and the first rotation in Afghanistan. Other than that my postings have been all over Canada,” Collin said.
He was honoured to represent the fallen at Wednesday’s ceremony.
“This nation has lost a lot of soldiers since Confederation, since we stood up as a nation. Over 118,000 dead, 250,000 injured. Those are incredible numbers to wrap your head around,” Collin said.
Colin said for him Remembrance Day is a solemn occasion to remember the sacrifice and the accomplishments.
“We live our lives today and we have a quality of life today because they gave up their lives, ” Collin said.
While attendance was discouraged, some spectators did watch from a respectful distance while wearing masks.
