Service of Remembrance @ Queen’s

Date

Tuesday November 11, 2025
10:50 am - 11:30 am

Location

Grant Hall

Poppy field with the sun shining behind it (creating a camera glare) with the words "Lest we forget" on the top.

80 years since the end of the Second World War

It is estimated that 70 – 85 million people lost their lives during WWII, making it the deadliest conflict in history. As the number of surviving veterans dwindles, the focus shifts from direct recollection, to preserving the stories and history.

There are at least 175 recorded Queen’s deaths from WWII - students, staff, and faculty who were looking forward to bright futures after graduating. In this 80th year since the end of the war, we remember the sacrifice of these individuals from the Queen’s community.

Read the story about the photos of Queen’s service members who died in the Second World War on the Queen’s Alumni website. Before returning to their permanent home in the JDUC, the photos will be displayed on the stage in Grant Hall during the service, and the names will be read at the 5th Field Company Plinth.

Queen’s University Archives have done phenomenal work memorializing both WWI and WWII Queen’s fallen, please see their website to learn more.

Service Program

Doors open at 10:30 am, service to begin at 10:50 am, classes are cancelled on November 11 between 10:30 and 11:30 am

Piper - Cheryl Pulling (The pipes being played were played during World War One. Read more about her Henderson bagpipes here.)

National Anthem, Performed by the Queen’s Choir, Directed by Darrell Christie

Words of Welcome - Erin Burns, Interfaith Chaplain

Last Post, Lament and Rouse – Trumpet, Dan Tremblay

Silence of Remembrance

Reading: In Flanders Fields by Lt-Col John McCrae – read by Veronique Berube (ArtSci ’26), daughter of two veterans

Reading: In Retrospect (commissioned to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII) by Simon Armitage - Norma Barrett, University Ombudsperson and veteran

Act of Remembrance, an excerpt from Laurence Binyon's “For the Fallen” – read by Marie Claude Arguin, Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Associate Vice-Principal (IT Services) and veteran

All respond: We will remember them

Remembrance Reflections – Paul Hungler, Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering and Ingenuity Labs and veteran

In Remembrance by Eleanor Daley - performed by the Queen’s Choir, Directed by Darrell Christie

Sending Out - Erin Burns, Interfaith Chaplain

Procession along University Avenue and right down Union Street to the 5th Field Company Plinth, a memorial to those who served with the 5th Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers, in both World Wars, for wreath laying

Reading of names of Queen’s fallen of WW2 – Read by Rosie LaLande, Relationships and Protocol Manager, Office of the Principal and veteran.

Commitment to Remember - read by Megan Hook (ConEd ‘27) and daughter of a veteran

All respond: We will remember them

Conclusion and invitation to Wallace Hall in the JDUC for fellowship and refreshments hosted by Queen’s Military and Veterans Network - Erin Burns, Interfaith Chaplain

The Memorial Room (a few doors down the hallway from Wallace Hall) honours the Queen’s Fallen from WWI and WWII, and will be open for quiet contemplation on Remembrance Day.


Support for Queen’s Military Community

Queen’s Military and Veterans Network is available to support and connect Queen’s students, staff, and faculty from the military community. We welcome anyone who is currently serving in the military, who has a military background, who is a military family member, or with any military connection that is meaningful to them. The group is a supportive space that offers comradeship, mentorship, and connection to supports.

Email: qmvn@queensu.ca

Queen’s Military and Veterans Network