Barrie Legion marks 80th anniversary of VE Day with ceremony and tribute

Special ceremonies are held to honour Second World War veterans.

Barrie Legion 147 held a remembrance ceremony on Thursday to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day, which signified the surrender of Nazi Germany in 1945.

VE Day marks a day of celebration and commemoration for the more-than one million Canadians who helped lead the allies to victory in the Second World War, and for the 40,000-plus Canadians who sacrificed their lives.

Troops both past and present, local dignitaries, and community members were on hand for the Barrie legion’s ceremony.

“When I think of VE Day and the end of the Second World War, I can only imagine the feeling of knowing it’s over and we’re going home,” said Lt.-Col. Mike Lacroix, from the Grey and Simcoe Foresters infantry in his speech.

The lieutenant-colonel said he also thinks of a close friend whose father died in the First World War and whose brothers died in the Second World War.

“As soon as he got off the train at Union station, it was his responsibility to care for his remaining family,” Lacroix recalled in an interview with CTV News. “That’s one story that I hold deep with me.”

Bill Snow is a 102-year-old Barrie-based veteran who served in the Canadian artillery during the Second World War. “It means a lot, that goes without asking,” said Snow of the significance of VE Day. “It meant the world to me. It meant that I was still alive.”

Prior to Thursday’s VE Day, the legion had unveiled 19 flags of local veterans who served in the Second World War, all of whom either grew up or lived in Simcoe County.

“If we’re free today, if we’re able to move completely on our own without having any fears, it’s because of the guys that gave their life,” said Marcel Vigneault, Barrie Legion 147 president. “We’ve got to remember them.”

While nearly a dozen wreaths were laid at the ceremony to honour those who had fallen, the Barrie Legion hopes to keep their experiences alive.

“The legion is the heart of the people that were involved in those wars,” added Vigneault. “If we’re not there to remember, people will forget. And we’ll lose all of this spirit that has to go on and on forever.”

Barrie Legion 147 will hold a similar ceremony in a few weeks to commemorate the 81st anniversary of D-Day.