Rembrance at City Park

Kelowna will gather at the cenotaph Monday Nov.11 for Remembrance Day, the ever-popular public showing of respect and to ensure the sacrifices made by uniformed personnel involved in conflict around the world are not forgotten.

But there's also a moving tribute nearby: rows and rows of white crosses placed neatly in City Park, each bearing the name of those who paid the ultimate price for freedom.

A total of 227 crosses are placed as part of the Field of Crosses campaign spearheaded by the Rotary Club of Kelowna.

Each year, a somber ceremony brings together relatives of those whose loved ones are commemorated in the project.

Among them, Janet Cameron and her siblings, whose great uncle, Lt. Ian Cameron, died in the first weekend of The Battle for Vimy Ridge.

“We try and come every year, out of respect for the ones who sacrificed everything for us,” she previously told Kelowna10. “It’s really important to acknowledge the sacrifice and what they gave up for us.”

Project Chair Rick Potter said the display serves as a reminder to those who fought for the freedom our country has today.

“My father was in WWII and was with the Royal Canadian Air Force and almost lost his life. My son fought in Afghanistan, and he lost several of his friends in Afghanistan. This has special meaning for me and for many,” he said.

Potter said the ongoing war in Ukraine has elevated the fragility of freedom and reminded many that war is not behind us.

“It’s something very present to each one of us and just the importance of peace in the world and working towards that sense of peace as opposed to hashing out our differences [in war].”

The Field of Crosses is on display until Tuesday Nov. 12.

Branch 26 of the Royal Canadian Legion will hold its annual Remembrance Day parade and ceremony , in downtown Kelowna. Beginning at 10:45 a.m., the parade will proceed along the lakefront promenade from Stuart Park to the cenotaph in City Park for the 11 a.m. ceremony.  

The Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans will hold a ceremony at the cenotaph at Lions Park in Rutland. Guests are asked to arrive by 10:30 a.m. ahead of the procession.