Members of the Preeceville Harvard Air Cadets 606 Squadron canvassed the Town of Preeceville on November 7 to promote wearing poppies prior to the Remembrance Day Service.
The poppy and the cadets have a long association with Remembrance Day, said CO Troy Rogowski. The poppy associated with Remembrance Day is based on the distinctive red flower that grows naturally in Western Europe in areas of disturbed earth. It was first observed after the destruction brought by the Napoleonic wars of the early 19th century in which fields were transformed from bare land into fields of blood red poppies, growing around the bodies of the fallen soldiers.
In late 1914, the fields of Northern France were once again ripped open as the First World War raged through Europe's heart. Once the conflict was over the poppy was one of the only plants to grow on the otherwise barren battlefields.
The significance of the poppy as a lasting memorial symbol to the fallen was realized by the Canadian surgeon John McCrae in his poem In Flanders Fields. The poppy came to represent the immeasurable sacrifice made by his comrades and quickly became a lasting memorial to those who died. It was adopted by the Royal British Legion as the symbol for their “Poppy Appeal” in 1921.
Air cadets are open to youth between 12 and 18 years and there is no registration fee, said Rogowski.
There are 26 cadets registered with the program this year. New cadets received their uniforms and are taught rules and routine drill manoeuvres by leaders as well as older cadets, he said.
The purpose of cadets is to develop in youths the attributes of leadership and engage in active citizenship and physical fitness within an environment that stimulates an interest in the Canadian Forces, a release said. The cadets are funded by the Department of National Defence, the Air Cadet League (a civilian non-profit organization), Navy League and the Army League. The motto of the air cadets is “To learn, to serve and to advance.”
