The last Remembrance Day at Kandahar Airfield

Published On Wed Nov 16 2011

By Captain Nicole Meszaros

During the last Remembrance Day parade of Operation ATHENA, MGen Jonathan Vance, who served two tours in command of Joint Task Force Afghanistan and Task Force Kandahar, places a poppy on each plaque of the Kandahar Airfield Memorial as Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay reads the names of those who lost their lives in Afghanistan while serving under Canadian command.

During the last Remembrance Day parade of Operation ATHENA, MGen Jonathan Vance, who served two tours in command of Joint Task Force Afghanistan and Task Force Kandahar, places a poppy on each plaque of the Kandahar Airfield Memorial as Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay reads the names of those who lost their lives in Afghanistan while serving under Canadian command.

MTTF Commander BGen Chuck Lamarre and MTTF Sergeant Major CWO Stephen Jeans salute the KAF Memorial after placing their wreath during the last Remembrance Day ceremony of Operation ATHENA.

MTTF Commander BGen Chuck Lamarre and MTTF Sergeant Major CWO Stephen Jeans salute the KAF Memorial after placing their wreath during the last Remembrance Day ceremony of Operation ATHENA.

Members of the Mission Transition Task Force who are not on parade at the KAF Memorial conduct the traditional Remembrance Day ceremony at a temporary cenotaph in a hangar in their work area.

Members of the Mission Transition Task Force who are not on parade at the KAF Memorial conduct the traditional Remembrance Day ceremony at a temporary cenotaph in a hangar in their work area.

MTTF Sergeant Major CWO Stephen Jeans helps Mrs. Patricia Braun, mother of Cpl David Braun, as she places a wreath in memory of 'Fallen Soldiers' at the Kandahar Airfield Memorial during the last Remembrance Day ceremony of Operation ATHENA. Cpl Braun, a soldier of the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, was deployed with the 1st Battalion The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group when he was killed by a suicide bomber who attacked a supply convoy in Kandahar City on 22 August 2006.

MTTF Sergeant Major CWO Stephen Jeans helps Mrs. Patricia Braun, mother of Cpl David Braun, as she places a wreath in memory of "Fallen Soldiers" at the Kandahar Airfield Memorial during the last Remembrance Day ceremony of Operation ATHENA. Cpl Braun, a soldier of the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, was deployed with the 1st Battalion The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group when he was killed by a suicide bomber who attacked a supply convoy in Kandahar City on 22 August 2006.

The plaque commemorating Cpl David Braun from the Kandahar Airfield Memorial.

The plaque commemorating Cpl David Braun from the Kandahar Airfield Memorial.

On 11 November 2011, the Canadians still serving at Kandahar Airfield stood together for the final Remembrance Day parade in front of the black and white marble memorial to our brothers and sisters in arms who have lost their lives in Afghanistan.

The troops on parade were the men and women of the Mission Transition Task Force (MTTF), the last rotation of Operation ATHENA.

The ceremony included close kin of our fallen: Silver Cross Mothers Mrs. Patricia Braun, Mrs Mabel Girouard and Ms Karen Megeney, and Corporal Kelly James and Ms Amanda Cushley, who each lost a brother to the insurgency. Their presence brought a powerful sentiment to stir the parade.

Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay came all the way from Ottawa to read the names of the 158 Canadian Forces members, two Canadian civilians, and 40 Americans who fell while serving in Afghanistan under Canadian command. Major-General Jonathan Vance, who served two tours in command of Joint Task Force Afghanistan and Task Force Kandahar, also took part, placing a poppy on each of the black marble plaques engraved with the effigies of the fallen as their names rang out.

"Loving God, our hearts are full of memories of those who have fought in wars and fought for a better world," said Major Harold King, the MTTF senior chaplain. "We reflect back on all that has happened in this country, of the names on the wall and the stones. The stones represent the lives of men and women who stepped into the breach and made the ultimate sacrifice."

The familiar, haunting notes of "Last Post" and "The Flowers of the Forest" filled the air around the troops on parade, reminding everyone present of the significance of Remembrance Day.

"This is a day of deep reflection for all of us serving here in Afghanistan," said Brigadier-General Chuck Lamarre, the MTTF commander. "During this final Remembrance Day ceremony in Kandahar, we remember all of Canada’s fallen and injured and their families, and are deeply appreciative of their service and sacrifices."

"The pride of all Canadians is before me today," said Chief Warrant Officer Stephen Jeans, the MTTF Sergeant Major, "and I could not be prouder than to stand here in Afghanistan and salute the memorial and the flag while paying my respects to the members of the Canadian Forces, our American allies and civilian counterparts who have given their lives. Lest we forget."

The memorial at Kandahar Airfield is a cenotaph made up of black and white marble tiles engraved with the names, images and birth and death dates of each individual — Canadian and American, military and civilian — who fell in Afghanistan while serving under Canadian command.

Now that the last Remembrance Day of Operation ATHENA is behind us, the KAF Memorial will be dismantled and shipped to Canada, where it will be reassembled and installed in a permanent location.

Capt Nicole Meszaros is a Public Affairs Officer deployed with the headquarters of the MTTF.