When the bodies of three more Canadian soldiers are brought home from Afghanistan on Monday, mourners will gather along the sides of the Highway of Heroes to remember the men whose deaths pushed Canada's troop casualties to 100 in the war-torn country.
The fallen soldiers are Cpl. Mark Robert McLaren, Warrant Officer Robert John Wilson and Pte. Demetrios Diplaros, all members of the 1st Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment based out of Petawawa, Ont.
They were killed Friday morning after the armoured vehicle they were travelling in was struck by an improvised explosive device (IED).
Their remains are due to arrive at Ontario's CFB Trenton at 2 p.m. ET on Monday afternoon.
Their surviving families will take part in a repatriation ceremony at the base, and then ride in a motorcade along the Highway of Heroes to Toronto.
It's a scene that has been repeated many times since the start of the Afghanistan mission, which generally brings hundreds of Canadians to the sides of the 172-kilometre stretch of Highway 401, holding flags, watching and saluting the motorcade as it passes by.
Historian Jack Granatstein has said the outpouring of emotion Canadians have shown for their fallen war heroes in recent years is "quite extraordinary."
"I have never seen anything in my life like the crowds that line Highway 401," he told The Canadian Press recently.
"Extraordinary displays of public sentiment in all kinds of weather, ranging from heat to cold to rain. The same crowds are out there all the time."
Based on these repeated scenes along the Highway of Heroes, Granatstein said he has "no doubt" members of the Canadian public support their troops.
With files from The Canadian Press
