The first-ever Remembrance Week Project kicks off on Saturday.
Developed by 5th Street Creative Initiatives in collaboration with the Collingwood Public Library, the project is a week-long celebration designed to inspire the community to remember by collectively discovering and embracing history.
Interactive events and displays will take place beginning on Nov. 2 and lead up to Remembrance Day the following Monday.
“It’s a lovely way to bring together the community, to remind us,” says Leslie Bochna, the coordinator, public relations, of the Collingwood Public Library. “The main idea here is education. It’s about remembrance and acknowledgement, but with an emphasis on education.”
The week kicks off with a presentation by the library’s own coordinator of local history and genealogy, Carole Stuart, followed by a memorabilia show and tell.
In Stuart’s presentation, Collingwood’s Forgotten Heroes: WWI Letters from the Front, you’ll travel back in time as she guides you chronologically through the First World War, using letters from the front and newspaper clippings written by those who lived it.
You’ll meet a teacher from Collingwood Collegiate Institute who was tasked with training young soldiers in England before they were shipped off overseas. A local business owner who became a Lieutenant Colonel and was in charge of transporting 1,000 troops, supplies and horses over to France. And a previous minister of All Saints’ Anglican Church who enlisted for the war. These individuals tell tales of their journeys, and their encounters with the Collingwood boys.
“I think it gives you a beautiful glimpse into what it really was like,” Stuart says.
Stuart wants to make sure these heroes are never forgotten.
After her presentation, the library invites attendees to head upstairs and experience a showcase of war memorabilia. They’ve received a number of donations from the legion and the Collingwood Historical Society, and are encouraging members from the community to bring their own war mementos and come and share their story.
The week continues with three other speakers, films from the National Film Board, and artistic exhibits on display between the Simcoe Street Theatre and the Collingwood Public Library. All events are free to the public, but donations are graciously accepted.
Speakers include Paul Pririe, Collingwood Poet Laureate Day Merrill, and Jane Cooper-Wilson, presenting Metis Service in Canadian Conflicts, Poems of War and Remembrance, and the African-Canadian Experience in War, respectively.
The week finishes off with a live musical of “love, sacrifice and the great war” presented by Collingwood’s own Shipyard Kitchen Party. In the musical, two brothers and the women they love tell the story of their triumphs and tragedies in the years surrounding the First World War. The story is based on real events, and takes you on a journey “from Georgian Bay to Vimy Ridge, and beyond.”
“It’s part of our history, all of us. No one is exempt from this. Somewhere in your life, your family and your history has been touched by war. Everybody has a story. It’s about bringing those stories out, hearing them, and never forgetting them,” says Bochna.
Ali Giedraitis, founder of 5th Street Creative and the initial brains behind this event, wants to emphasize the educational and interactive aspects of this initiative. The goal is to make the Remembrance Week Project an annual event.
“Remembering on Remembrance Day has become more of a ritual rather than a sharing of stories. This whole thing is about getting the community involved in different ways. We want people to talk, share their memories, and feel the meaning behind remembering,” says Giedraitis.
