In honour of Remembrance Day, Larry Pearson has filled two display cases in the west wing of the City Centre Mall with various items of significance pertaining to fallen soldiers of the distant and recent past. On display until November 12, Weyburn holds a unique cross-section of memorabilia honouring Canadian, Australian and American soldiers.
A larger display case features materials collected from both the Canadian and Australian Forces. Beside a uniformed mannequin on loan from the Canadian Armed Forces, a set of retired tank shells on loan from the Moose Jaw Army Base serve as vases for silk poppies in the centre of the large display. An enlarged poster borrowed from the Legion Magazine features the names and faces of the Canadian soldiers who have fallen since 2002 in Afghanistan.
Mr. Pearson did unfortunately have to add a newspaper clipping on October 31, as Canada lost another soldier during a training exercise recently. This particular news hits close to home as the soldier, who had just become a father at home in Edmonton prior to his return to Kabul, had family in the Weyburn and Radville area. Cpl. Byron Greff of the 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was one of sixteen people who died during a suicide-bomber attack.
"When you put a picture and a name together, people remember better," said Pearson, who has devoted six months to the completion of the displays. Aside from actually hand-making some elements of the display, Pearson also gathered materials from the various loaner sources.
Just under half of the larger display window contains items representing the Australian Armed Forces. The materials were donated to the Royal Canadian Legion by the Return of Services League, which is the Australian version of the Royal Canadian Legion. Along with their official wreaths, posters, newspaper clippings and other relevant memorabilia, the Return of Services League also included a wide array of poppies, which are varied in style and sold with fixed prices in packages.
Originally, Pearson had intended to purchase the materials for use in the display, but the Return of Services League in the end decided to send the items as a donation, so that Canada could have a supply of Australian commemorative representation. The Australian lapel pins vary in size, quality and price, adding to the beauty and variety of artifacts on display. The Australian Veterans Affairs also sent a poster commemorating the 100th year of the Australian Navy.
Installed near the Australian flag was a photo image of Private Matthew Lambert of the Royal Australian Regiment, killed in action this year in Afghanistan at the young age of 26. When Mr. Pearson was arranging with Gail's House of Flowers in Regina to have a silk version of the Australian Regiment's funeral wreath prepared for the display, they gave Pearson a discount because the soldier was the same age as the woman's own son.
Whether Australian or Canadian or American, the reality of fallen soldiers hits close to home. In fact, the smaller of Pearson's two displays includes a photograph of Sergeant Darby Todd Morin, an American soldier who was killed in action in 2009 at the age of 25. Morin happened to be a Canadian aboriginal who grew up on a reservation just north of Saskatoon. In honour of the soldier's heritage, Pearson added to the American display a Pendleton blanket, a dream catcher, a braid of sweet grass and a figurine of an eagle. Also included in the display is a print donated by Michael Lonechild entitled, 'The Battle that Lingers', which depicts soldiers around a campfire surrounded by the spirits of their ancestors. The display also features a military cap that is on loan from the U.S. Army, as well as a recent listing of fallen soldiers from the Williston area.
"It's important to remember," said Mr. Pearson when asked why he spends so much time and energy on the displays. With such creative care and diligence taken by Pearson, Weyburn has the opportunity to remember the fallen soldiers with pride, compassion and the challenge to never forget.
