Countless lives have been lost to war, including thousands of soldiers who once called southern Alberta home. These were men and women with families, friends, and loved ones.
Through their sacrifice, Albertans get to live in freedom and peace.
On Remembrance Day, we remember these men and women who served and continue to serve our country.
However, finding the name of each soldier killed is challenging, especially the names of soldiers whose remains could not be identified.
The Field of Crosses Memorial Project aims to see the name of every southern Alberta soldier killed in action written on a white cross erected along Memorial Drive near Centre Street in Calgary.
The initiative was launched in 2009 by Murray McCann, a local businessman and philanthropist. McCann came up with the idea while travelling through Georgia in the United States.
While in the state, McCann came across a row of crosses he thought were erected to commemorate a bad accident.
But when McCann realized it was Memorial Day in the United States, he immediately understood the crosses were meant to remember fallen soldiers from the area.
“It had such an impact as to how many had lost their lives over the years protecting our freedoms, and I wondered how many from southern Alberta had given up their lives for the lifestyle I enjoy and all Calgarians do,” McCann told CBC News.
The initiative is open to the public free of charge and runs from November 1 to November 10, leading up to Remembrance Day.
The initiative commemorates daily tribute themes across Eleven Days. Each day starts with a sunrise ceremony and closes with a sunset ceremony. The daily tribute themes are as follows:
- November 1 – UN Peacekeepers Day
- November 2 – Royal Canadian Navy Day
- November 3 – USA Tribute Day
- November 4 – Youth Day
- November 5 – Memorial Cross Families Day
- November 6 – Canadian Army Day
- November 7 – First Responders Day
- November 8 – Indigenous Veterans Day
- November 9 – Canadian Air Force Day
- November 10 – Honouring Women of War (sunrise) & Night of Lights Celebrating Peace (sunset)
- November 11 – Remembrance Day Ceremony
In preparation for the initiative, volunteers spend months visiting towns and cities across southern Alberta, searching for names.
The volunteers perform a detailed search, checking cenotaphs, church and legion records. Each name is then researched to gather more information.
In addition to volunteers, the initiative also receives help from people, such as relatives, who know the names of soldiers who fought in wars but did not return.
When the initiative started in 2009, there were only 200 crosses erected.
This year, more than 3,600 crosses with the names of military personnel are on display thanks to the efforts of volunteers and the community.
Each cross is inscribed with the soldier’s name, age at death, rank, regiment, and date of death in conflicts over the past century.
Battles dating as far back as the Boer War in 1899, through the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, and the Afghanistan War are included.
Those involved in the Vietnam and the United Nations peacekeeping missions in the Middle East and Cyprus are also commemorated with a cross.
“The Field of Crosses is a poignant reminder that the freedom we enjoy is not without cost. This sobering display is a stark reminder of the atrocities of war while also offering gratitude to those who fought for our freedom and never came back,” McCann said in a statement.
The Field of Crosses initiative puts into perspective the cost of our freedom.
Let us honour the sacrifice of those who gave their today for our tomorrow.
