For me, it's a toss up between this year and last year.
Last year, I had just come home from Afghanistan (everyone knows why... not going to go into it again) and wasn't able to march in the parade. It was the first year in 12 years or so that I was a spectator and not a participant. It was a very emotional service for me, knowing the rest of my platoon was still in Afghanistan as well as the loss of some friends both while I was there and shortly after I left.
After the parade, we (the Regiment) did what we always do; get on the bus and go to every Legion and service club in Kitchener-Waterloo (about 7 clubs)... then we cap off the night with dinner at a local pub and then out on the town (for those who survive that long... I usually don't make it past dinner).
We were in the middle of dinner, and the pub had the news on the big screen. Don Cherry's Remembrance Day address came on, and he read a letter sent to him by one of the boys in my platoon, who was still over seas... Don Cherry held up a Crazy 8s patch the boys sent him as he read the letter. It really got to me.
At the end of the report, they showed all the soldiers who had died ending with the few who were on my tour. It was yet another very emotional event...
This year the parade and ceremony went well; not quote as emotional as last year. There was one major difference which made this year quite memorable; the bus tour.
Normally, as I said before, we get on a bus which the Legions in KW set up ($2 tickets). The bus goes between all the Legions and service clubs in the area on a regular schedule and gives us a chance to visit each one for about 15 min per club. The bus is usually packed with vets, Legion members, soldiers, and civilians. We encourage the troops to get on the bus and visit vets at each Legion. The down sides to the bus are; it only stays at the Legions for 15 min each, it only hits the Legions and service clubs in Kitchener-Waterloo and not Cambridge (which is where are HQ is), and after the Legions, we're on our own to get around anywhere else we want to go. Besides all that, the idea of a bus for the Legions and service clubs is awesome.
Anyway, this year we paraded in Galt Cambridge (We rotate between KW and Cambridge each year), and since there is no Legion bus in that area, our only options were to either drive to a Legion in Kitchener and miss all the Legions in Cambridge and have to leave cars on the other side of town, or rent our own bus.
We rented our own bus... for 12 hours. We started in Cambridge, departing the Armoury at 1330h, and headed to the Hespler Legion, followed by the Preston Legion, the we made our way to Kitchener. We finished the Legion and Service club rounds at about 2030h at Branch 530 Legion in Waterloo, spending at least 30 min at each Legion. We had 3 pipers with us (one of which didn't bring his pipes... not mentioning names... but he is a member here.) and we piped are way into each Legion.
Once the Legion tour was done, we made our way to a local pub for dinner, and at around 2230h, we mounted up again and moved the troops to a Bar for some social time.
We made our last rounds to drop people off closer to their homes (so they could get taxi's or rides from friends) at around 2400h ending back at the Cambridge armoury at around 0030h... Those of us who were left cleaned out the bus and sent the driver on his way happy. He even volunteered to drive us next year.
We did have a somber moment though; Along the route we stopped at Parkview cemetery to pay our respects to our fallen friend and brother; Johnny Xaysy's.
It gave us all the perspective of the day; a day to Remember all our fallen friends.
We were honoured to have Johnny's brother, Jamie, along for the ride (as a guest of the JR's mess), and for many members, including myself, it was an emotional moment.
For the ceremony in Kitchener, a representative the Junior ranks mess, and a close friend of Johnny's along with Johnny's brother, laid a wreath at the cenotaph in his memory. In Cambridge, a civilian friend of the Regiment (our Regimental Librarian) read a poem she wrote entitled "Johnny X".
This year had it's great moments; the bus, the Legions and the comradely of fellow soldiers. And it had its somber moments; remembering fallen friends and long talks with veterans... the kind of discussions only heard between fellow soldiers over a beer.
It was a very memorable Remembrance Day.
