B.C. veteran recalls danger, discipline of war, as Vancouver cenotaph turns 100

Second World War veteran Percival Smith was a teenager when he entered the British Merchant Navy, but after years at sea he emerged as a man who returned to a family he "couldn't even recognize" after the war.

Smith, 101, was among thousands who gathered in downtown Vancouver for the 100th anniversary Remembrance Day ceremony at the Victory Square Cenotaph.

Smith said he was glad to remember friends who gave up their lives to serve king and country during the Second World War, but he didn't know if his health would stand up to next year's ceremony at the memorial that was inaugurated the year after his birth.

Smith said although he was in "terrible danger" during most of his service, he and his shipmates didn't think of dying, but rather "what the next day was going to be like."

But the danger aside, his time at war gave him discipline and it was "the best time" of his life, he said.

The threat of rain held off during the ceremony Monday, and just before 11 a.m., military horns fell silent and a wave of stillness washed over the crowd, dots of bright red poppies pinned over their hearts.

Remembrance Day services were held across B.C., including Victoria, where about 5,000 people gathered at the cenotaph at the legislature.

Retired Cpl. Neil Dancer, who served in Afghanistan with the 3rd Battalion of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, said in Victoria that the service helped in his struggles to overcome mental health issues connected to his military service.

"I ended up carrying a lot of responsibility over there and it really messed with my head over the years," he said.

"You live with the decisions you had to make. It's not always easy and that's why we show up here every year just so none of the kids that are here have to go through what any of us had to go through."

Retired Capt. Tim Cheesman, who served with the Royal Regina Rifles reserve regiment, said he was pleased to see the large crowd in Victoria, especially so many young people.

Cheesman said he was not deployed overseas but the regiment served in conflict zones.

"We deployed numerous times to peacekeeping and numerous times to Afghanistan, and everybody out of our regiment made it back safely."

Jason Overy watched the service in Vancouver as a civilian, having previously been part of many ceremonies as a military drummer, initially with the Band of the 5th Field Regiment in Victoria before joining the Band of the 15th Field Regiment in Vancouver.

He retired in 2020, just shy of 30 years of service, and said he missed taking part in the ceremonies.

"It was my honour to serve as long as I did," he said. "But those are the things I miss, moments like this, being part of the actual celebration, part of the remembrance or the honouring of the sacrifices that were made for us. So, being part of those traditions was very powerful in the military and I missed those aspects."

Rev. Andrew Gates, Royal Canadian Legion Padre, offered a prayer at the Victoria ceremony.

"May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people, so that you will work for justice, equity and peace," he said. "May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and change their pain to joy."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 11, 2024.