Remembrance Day

Clifford Williamson recalls his days in the Canadian Navy at Broadmead Care in Saanich. (Megan Atkins-Baker/News Staff)

PHOTOS: 91-year-old Saanich veteran recalls life at sea aboard the Athabaskan

Canadian Navy member shares his experiences while serving in the 1950s

Clifford Williamson recalls his days in the Canadian Navy at Broadmead Care in Saanich. (Megan Atkins-Baker/News Staff)
Mary, from left, Margot and Megan Jameson collected the records of their uncle and Second World War veteran, John Bayard, following the discovery of his daughter and their first cousin, Ann, last month.
(Kiernan Green/News Staff)

Victoria sisters discover long-lost U.K. cousin, the daughter of wartime casualty uncle

Jameson sisters to think of orphaned cousin and their uncle on Remembrance Day

Mary, from left, Margot and Megan Jameson collected the records of their uncle and Second World War veteran, John Bayard, following the discovery of his daughter and their first cousin, Ann, last month.
(Kiernan Green/News Staff)
A few hundred residents gathered with veterans outside Sidney Municipal Hall Nov. 11 to remember all those who have served Canada in war. (Jane Skrypnek/News Staff)

PHOTOS: Hundreds remember the sacrifices of veterans at Sidney’s Remembrance Day ceremony

A few hundred residents paid their respects outside the Sidney cenotaph Nov. 11

A few hundred residents gathered with veterans outside Sidney Municipal Hall Nov. 11 to remember all those who have served Canada in war. (Jane Skrypnek/News Staff)
Ken Himes holds a photo of himself in his early 20s when he was doing military training in California. (Megan Atkins-Baker/News Staff)

Former peacekeeper proud of shifting gears, adding diploma to his toolbox

Ken Himes recalls tense moments in Cyprus as a young man trying to help keep the peace

Ken Himes holds a photo of himself in his early 20s when he was doing military training in California. (Megan Atkins-Baker/News Staff)
Veterans, Canadian Armed Forces members and the general public stand for O Canada during the 2021 Remembrance Day ceremony in Langford Thursday. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)

PHOTOS: Langford Remembrance Day ceremony welcomes back in-person service

Wet weather doesn’t stop attendees from filling Veterans Memorial Park Thursday

Veterans, Canadian Armed Forces members and the general public stand for O Canada during the 2021 Remembrance Day ceremony in Langford Thursday. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)
A hanger on the site of a Second World War airfield that was part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan is seen near Claresholm, Alta., on Thursday, Nov. 4, 2021. The plan was a major program for Allied aircrews. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
A hanger on the site of a Second World War airfield that was part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan is seen near Claresholm, Alta., on Thursday, Nov. 4, 2021. The plan was a major program for Allied aircrews. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Sentinels stand guard during the Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on November 11, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Canadians welcomed to attend Remembrance ceremonies, told to wear masks and distance

Some restrictions and changes will nonetheless remain in place as COVID-19 continues to pose a threat

Sentinels stand guard during the Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on November 11, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Remembrance Day ceremonies have provided people with the opportunity to consider the sacrifices made by those who served during times of war. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many ceremonies have been cancelled or are held online only. (Black Press file photo)

QUIZ: A time for remembrance

How much do you know about times of war?

Remembrance Day ceremonies have provided people with the opportunity to consider the sacrifices made by those who served during times of war. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many ceremonies have been cancelled or are held online only. (Black Press file photo)
Second World War veteran and former RCAF pilot Donovan Nixon points to a logbook containing every flight he ever did. (Jake Romphf/News Staff)

‘I don’t know how I did it’: A teenage bomber pilot’s perfect but perilous missions high above Europe

Second World War veteran Donovan Nixon, 99, recalls risking his life in the sky

Second World War veteran and former RCAF pilot Donovan Nixon points to a logbook containing every flight he ever did. (Jake Romphf/News Staff)
Gordon Quan, who turns 96 in January, is among 26,300 or so surviving veterans of the Second World War (as of March 2020). (Wolf Depner/News Staff)

Chinese-Canadian veteran from Victoria relishes opportunity to connect past with present

Gordon Quan trained to operate as a demolition expert behind Japanese lines

Gordon Quan, who turns 96 in January, is among 26,300 or so surviving veterans of the Second World War (as of March 2020). (Wolf Depner/News Staff)
A photo by Frank Burrell shows military training exercises with horses at Willows Camp during the First World War. (Oak Bay Archives PHOT: 2005-020-001)

PHOTOS: A look at troop training in Oak Bay during the First World War

Garbage, sewer complaints dominate interaction between council, camp leadership

A photo by Frank Burrell shows military training exercises with horses at Willows Camp during the First World War. (Oak Bay Archives PHOT: 2005-020-001)
Second World War veteran Tom Burdge with one of the planes from ‘Tom’s Hangar,’ a gallery of Mosquito artwork and photographs hanging in his Victoria condo. The painting – of a 248 squadron Mosquito over Barnstable Bay, North Devon in 1945 – was created by friend Al Buckham, a retired Royal Canadian Air Force master warrant officer living in Courtenay. (Christine van Reeuwyk/News Staff)

Victoria veteran spent Second World War flying below the radar

Continued camaraderie is key as marking Remembrance Day comes full circle for nonagenarian

Second World War veteran Tom Burdge with one of the planes from ‘Tom’s Hangar,’ a gallery of Mosquito artwork and photographs hanging in his Victoria condo. The painting – of a 248 squadron Mosquito over Barnstable Bay, North Devon in 1945 – was created by friend Al Buckham, a retired Royal Canadian Air Force master warrant officer living in Courtenay. (Christine van Reeuwyk/News Staff)
From left: Brylee Apted, Everly Apted, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 91 President Norman Scott and Maylin Apted show off the girls’ 2020 donation from Remembrance Day painting sales. (Photo courtesy of Dani Dwinnell)

Metchosin sisters selling paintings in support of Langford Legion for 6th year in a row

Branch president says reliable contribution espescially appreciated as donations down overall

From left: Brylee Apted, Everly Apted, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 91 President Norman Scott and Maylin Apted show off the girls’ 2020 donation from Remembrance Day painting sales. (Photo courtesy of Dani Dwinnell)
Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence Minister Lawrence MacAulay responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa on November 10, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Government will hire more staff to address veterans’ backlog, caseloads: minister

Announcement made in the wake of 5-part Canadian Press series on veteran’s issues

Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence Minister Lawrence MacAulay responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa on November 10, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
The Royal Canadian Legion Prince Edward Branch 91 in Langford is one of several in the region managing to survive the pandemic. (Jane Skrypnek/News Staff)

Greater Victoria legions surviving, but have long-term concerns

Pandemic, dwindling membership lay blows to community organizations

The Royal Canadian Legion Prince Edward Branch 91 in Langford is one of several in the region managing to survive the pandemic. (Jane Skrypnek/News Staff)
Danielle Cossey-Sutton, a VIU bachelor of education student, used online resources to research the traumas experienced by women during the First World War. (Vancouver Island University photo)

Old letters provide ‘window’ for VIU student’s research into women’s wartime experiences

VIU education student examines trauma on the front lines of First World War

Danielle Cossey-Sutton, a VIU bachelor of education student, used online resources to research the traumas experienced by women during the First World War. (Vancouver Island University photo)
In Victoria’s Ross Bay Cemetery, rows of granite headstones commemorate those lost in the First and Second World War. (Tegwyn Hughes/News Staff)

‘Dignity and grace’: How Greater Victoria cemeteries honour veterans

The history and legacy of Canadian heroes, engraved in granite

In Victoria’s Ross Bay Cemetery, rows of granite headstones commemorate those lost in the First and Second World War. (Tegwyn Hughes/News Staff)
President of the Langford branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, Norm Scott salutes after laying a wreath at the Remembrance Day ceremony at Veteran’s Memorial Park in Langford in 2020. (Black Press Media file photo)

Remembrance Day ceremonies: Pay your respects in person or virtually around Greater Victoria

Modified events see some in-person services resuming, while many remain virtual

President of the Langford branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, Norm Scott salutes after laying a wreath at the Remembrance Day ceremony at Veteran’s Memorial Park in Langford in 2020. (Black Press Media file photo)
Nicholas and Peggy Abkhazi in their garden in Fairfield. Abkhazi Garden is opening for two separate public events this month, including a first-time Nov. 11 marking of the wartime heritage of the former property owners. (Courtesy of The Land Conservancy of British Columbia)
Nicholas and Peggy Abkhazi in their garden in Fairfield. Abkhazi Garden is opening for two separate public events this month, including a first-time Nov. 11 marking of the wartime heritage of the former property owners. (Courtesy of The Land Conservancy of British Columbia)
Veteran Matthew Kane poses for a photograph in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, November 4, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

The Money: Today’s veterans fighting Ottawa for equality with previous generations

Campaign continues in fight for equity and fairness for all veterans

Veteran Matthew Kane poses for a photograph in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, November 4, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck