Richmond’s Remembrance Day ceremony is back this year with a full parade and in-person gathering after two years of being largely online.
The ceremony begins at 10:40 a.m. on Nov. 11 at the cenotaph in front of city hall, followed by two minutes of silence at 11 a.m. and the laying of wreaths.
The ceremony doesn’t change much from year to year, said Matthew McBride, chair of the Remembrance Day Committee, as it was codified in the 1930s by the Royal Canadian Legion. Like many military ceremonies, it’s “brief, to the point and without colour.”
“This is not a pageant or a trooping of the colours – it’s a remembrance ceremony,” McBride said. “We keep it tight and clean.”
The Remembrance Day parade in Richmond this year will be about 900 strong and open to the public to watch and commemorate those who served in Canada’s wars.
Streets will be closed and traffic patterns changed between 8 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. During this time, there will be restricted road access in both directions on Granville Avenue between Minoru Boulevard and Buswell Street; No. 3 Road will also be closed in both directions from Park Road to Bennett Road.
Taking part in the parade will be the RCMP, the 39th Service Battalion, six cadet corps, Richmond Fire-Rescue, St. John Ambulance, Canadian Border Services Agency, Royal Canadian Marine Search & Rescue and other service agencies.
The ceremony itself is about 17 minutes long and will include the national anthem, opening remarks, RC Palmer choir performance of In Flanders Fields, a piper playing Amazing Grace, after which McBride will tell a story about a fallen soldier whose name is on the cenotaph.
This will be followed by the laying of wreaths by official attendees.
McBride also encourages community members who want to, to lay wreaths after the official ceremony. He said, any group or individual interested should contact the legion which has wreaths available at cost.
McBride recalled attending his first Remembrance Day ceremony as a teenager in Maple Ridge.
“Just the drama, the importance, the significance of the event and how it was so important for everyone to participate, left a mark on me,” McBride said.
With many veterans in his family and having served in the navy himself, McBride said he grew up in a “household of remembrance.”
“It’s baked into my DNA, if you will,” he said.
Since then, he has attended every year, and for the past few years, has been organizing the Richmond event.
While it’s a short ceremony, McBride said it’s important to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
“You have to remember the Canadians that gave their lives for what we have today, whether we agree what we have today is good or not,” McBride said. “People died for that.”
For those unable to attend in person, Richmond’s Remembrance Day service can be viewed online. To watch the event live, click on the “Watch Ceremony” button at www.richmond.ca/remember. The recording will also be available to view in its entirety following the ceremony.
Portable washrooms will be installed at various locations surrounding the parade route.
