Service of Remembrance @ Queen’s
Date
Wednesday November 11, 202610:50 am - 11:30 am
Location
Grant Hall
Remembrance through the ages
While we reflect on the sacrifices made during the First and Second World Wars, Remembrance also extends to individuals who have served in more recent operations and to the members of the Canadian Armed Forces serving today.
At Queen's, Remembrance takes many forms such as memorial services, monuments, archival collections, and the preservation of stories. These acts of Remembrance help ensure that the lessons and sacrifices they represent are not forgotten.
This year's theme, Remembrance Through the Ages, invites us to reflect on how Remembrance evolves over time. As living memory gives way to history, each generation preserves and shares these stories. In doing so, we honour not only those who served in the past, but also those who do today.
To learn more about Queen’s contributions to Canada’s wartime efforts, explore the Queen’s University Archives exhibition, Queen’s Remembers. For stories of Queen’s alumni and community members who died while serving in the Second World War, visit the Queen’s Alumni website. (Beaded poppy in image by Liv Rondeau (Ed’19), owner of Flint and Maple and a Queen’s Ph.D. candidate in Cultural Studies)
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.
Alongside traditional elements, the program will feature songs by the Queen’s student choir, readings of letters from the Queen’s Archives dating from 1917 to 2010, and poems highlighting the stories of Indigenous veterans.
Piper - Cheryl Pulling (The pipes being played were played during WWI. Read more about her Henderson bagpipes here.)
Words of Welcome - Erin Burns, Interfaith Chaplain
National Anthem - Performed by the Queen’s Choir, Directed by Darrell Christie
Last Post – Trumpet, Dan Tremblay
Silence of Remembrance
Lament and Rouse – Trumpet, Dan Tremblay
Remembrance through the ages - Erin Burns, Interfaith Chaplain
Reading from WWI: In Flanders Fields by Lt-Col John McCrae – read by Lieutenant-Colonel Rory Fowler (retired), Comm '91, PhD Candidate in Law
Reading from WWI: The Dialogues: the Song of Francis Pegahmagabow: DEER SPIRIT – Nicole Parsons, 2nd year Political Studies and Indigenous Knowledges and Perspectives student, and parent is an active member of the Canadian Armed Forces and has served in Yugoslavia and Afghanistan twice
Reading from WWI: Letter from Lieutenant James Maxwell McIlquham, France, Sept. 3, 1917 - Marcus Young
Reading from WWII: Letter from Waldo Edward Lovel Smith. Dec. 13, 1944 - Megan Hook, ConEd ‘27 and daughter of a veteran
Reading from current day: Letter from Anonymous Soldier serving in Afghanistan 2010 – Rosie LaLande, Smith Engineering staff member, British Army veteran, wife of a soldier, daughter of a veteran
Act of Remembrance, an excerpt from Laurence Binyon's “For the Fallen” – read by Mark Erdman, Manager of Community Relations and Issues, and Canadian Army Veteran
All respond: We will remember them
Nothing Gold Can Stay (music by Kenley Kristofferson, words by Robert Frost) - performed by Queen's University Choral Ensemble, 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 WWI – read by Paul Hook
Commitment to Remember - read by Niki Boytchuk-Hale, University Rector
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
