Remembrance service hosted by Alberta legislature

The Alberta legislature rotunda hosts a public remembrance service on Nov. 6, 2025. (Darcy Seaton / CTV News Edmonton)

The Alberta legislature was acclaimed as a symbol of democratic freedom at a public remembrance service it hosted on Thursday.

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The ceremony was held at 11 a.m in the legislature rotunda, ahead of National Indigenous Veterans Day on Saturday and Remembrance Day on Tuesday.

Government members who attended included Premier Danielle Smith, assembly speaker Ric McIver, who emceed the event, and Official Opposition and Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, as well as Lt.-Gov. Salma Lakhani.

Elder Francis Whiskeyjack blessed the ceremony, then Smith took the podium.

“This beautiful space we’re gathered in is a monument to democracy in Alberta. There’s a sacredness to it, a sanctity, and it’s easy to feel that when you’re walking through these halls,” the premier said. “But democracy isn’t just limited to this building or these grounds. It reigns over every corner of the province, ensuring that everyone who lives here has a voice and a say in our future.”

Smith continued, “We’ve known so many years of peace and democracy in Canada that we sometimes overlook how precious these gifts are. We sometimes forget how fragile they can be. This morning’s ceremony reminds us of exactly what that costs.”

“I too, think about the beginning of that First World War. We were young as a province. This building barely existed,” Nenshi noted during his remarks.

“So many young people signed up to go halfway around the world to fight in a battle, because they knew instinctively what they were fighting for was right and what they were fighting for was good. And from then to this moment, we have had Canadians willing to stand up and serve for (the) country with courage, selflessness, strength and sacrifice. We remember them today.”

The ceremony also consisted of a reading of the First World War poem “In Flanders Fields” by Lt.-Col. John McCrae, performances of “The Last Post” and “The Rouse” by Indigenous veteran Lt. Colin Bonneau, a lament by piper Langford Bawn, and a benediction by Maj. Robert Kerr.