REGINA — Southern Saskatchewan residents are invited to attend Remembrance Day ceremonies on Thursday, to remember and honour Canada’s veterans. In Regina there will be two outdoor ceremonies open to the public. The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 001 is hosting its annual ceremony in Victoria Park at the cenotaph. The public is asked to arrive at 10:30 a.m. with the service beginning at 10:40 a.m. Participants will be asked to socially distance and wear masks. Henry Sobchyshyn, Legion parade marshal, said during the ceremony there will be prayers, a moment of silence and and official wreath laying. “Then we will have a little pause in the program and then the rest of the wreaths will be laid,” Sobchyshyn said. The indoor ceremony at the Brandt Centre has been cancelled for the second year in a row, due to COVID-19. There will also be a ceremony at the Saskatchewan War Memorial on the west side of the legislative grounds. This event is being put on by the Royal Regina Rifles and will include a 21 gun salute. The Royal Regina Rifles told CTV News this is the first Remembrance Day event it has planned. The event will start at 10:40 a.m. with the 21 gun salute firing across Wascana Lake at 11:00 a.m. Sobchyshyn encourages people participating in the outdoor events to dress for the weather as it’s expecting to be cold. The Royal Canadian Branch 59 in Moose Jaw will hold a hybrid event this year. There will be a small ceremony held at Jones Parkview Funeral Home starting at 10:45 a.m. Approximately 150 people will be able to attend and they must show proof of vaccination. The service will also be live-streamed on the legion’s Facebook page and on the televisions at the local legion. Saskatchewan’s Lieutenant Governor Russ Mirasty is expected to attend the Remembrance Day ceremony in Yorkton. Residents are asked to arrive at the Gallagher Centre’s Flexihall at 9:45 a.m. with a parade ceremony starting at 10:00 a.m. Sobchyshyn added the ceremonies are more now less about remembrance and more about paying tribute, as most of the people who would remember World War II have passed away. “It’s to understand what these people sacraficed and to pay tribute to and honour their memory,” he said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
