ERIN – Air cadets from the 242 Ross Ferguson Squadron are embarking on a pilgrimage to Juno Beach in Normandy, honouring Canadian soldiers who landed there 75 years ago in the Second World War.
The cadets have enjoyed strong support from the community, raising more than $35,000 for the trip.
The squadron will send 15 cadets and four members of their military staff, under the command of Captain Eugene Sidlar.
“It is important for the cadets to be involved personally, to give them more of an appreciation of what Canadian service people contributed to changing the world,” said Sidlar.
“It is an opportunity to re-live that history firsthand, to stand on that same soil and say thank you.
“It will be an incredibly moving and life-changing opportunity for the cadets and officers involved.”
The Erin cadets range in age from 12 to 18.
They will travel with cadets from 121 Red Arrows Squadron in Guelph, under the command of Major Stephen Harwood. The former member of the 11th Field Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery will lead a group of three staff and eight cadets.
In Europe, they will be joined by a group of 17 from the 1705 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps in Vernon, B.C.
The first leg of the trip is in England, including a visit to the Imperial War Museum and a guided tour of London on June 2.
“It’s a good mix of military history and culture,” said Sidlar.
The next day they will see the underground command centre of the Churchill War Rooms and travel to Bletchley Park, the top-secret facility where a computer was invented to crack German codes.
They will cross the English Channel by ferry from Portsmouth, travelling a similar route as the Allied soldiers.
On June 6, 1944, some 14,000 Canadians stormed the beaches, helping the Allies break the hold of Nazi Germany’s “Fortress Europe,” and 359 died on that day.
It was the beginning of the end of WWII.
More than 90,000 Canadian soldiers saw action in the Normandy campaign which followed. Overall, more than one million Canadians served during the war.
The Erin cadets will arrive in Caen on June 4 and visit the Juno Beach Centre.
On June 5 they will go to the Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, where 2,092 soldiers are buried, and lay a wreath there.
They will also visit the Abbey D’Ardenne Canadian Memorial. It is the place where 20 Canadian prisoners of war were murdered by members of the 12th SS Panzer Division.
After investigation by the Canadian War Crimes Commission, SS Commander Kurt Meyer stood trial and was convicted of inciting his troops to commit murder and served nearly nine years in prison.
On June 6, the official D-Day Commemoration Ceremony will take place at the Juno Beach Centre.
“They will have possibly one of the last opportunities to personally say thank-you to some of the veterans of the conflict who will be in attendance,” said Sidlar.
The Erin group expects to be part of a very large crowd, with people from all over the world.
There will be a special fly-over by military aircraft.
Four of the senior Erin cadets will be part of a group of 359 young people who will pay tribute to the 359 Canadians who lost their lives on the beach.
They are Warrant Officer First Class Jessica Aubin, Warrant Officer Second Class David Crook, Warrant Officer Second Class Kaitlyn Dornhoff and Flight Sergeant Jacob Dutto.
On June 7 the group will travel to Paris.
They will visit the Louvre Museum, take a walking tour of the Latin Quarter, make a photo stop at the Eiffel Tower and possibly visit the catacombs of Paris.
Planning and fundraising for this trip has been going on for two years.
“At first, I didn’t know if we could do it,” said Sidlar, who lives in Mount Forest. He joined the air cadets there at the age of 12.
Although he does not come from a military family, he became interested in aircraft because his father, who was born in Normandy in 1939, worked at the de Haviland aircraft plant in Downsview for many years.
His father and other family members will travel separately to the D-Day event.
Sidlar is now a Grade 5 teacher at Arthur Public School.
“I’m hoping to gather firsthand experience from the place to hand down to future generations,” he said.
“It will be remarkable.”
The family of each participating cadet pledged to cover the entire cost of the trip, which was approximately $3,200 per person.
This cost was then reduced by the fundraising undertaken by the squadron over the past two years. Each cadet will have their cost reduced by about $2,000.
Fundraising has been headed up by Amy Stinson, chairperson of the sponsoring committee.
“She and her committee of dedicated volunteers have done an incredible job making this exceptional opportunity as affordable for the cadets and families as possible,” said Sidlar.
Separate sales of chocolate and pepperoni brought in an extra $3,200.
“The families did exceptional amounts of work at all events to assist in helping to generate the funds.”
Major events included a garage sale; a pancake breakfast; a wine and sign night; a bake, craft and vendor show in April; and three scratch ticket raffles.
They also received donations from Branch 442 Royal Canadian Legion in Erin, the Town of Erin, Wellington County, Erin Optimist Club, Rotary Club of Erin, Erin Lions Club, Rory McKinnon (McDonald’s Caledon Village), Hopewell, McGregor Meats, Maple Lodge Farms, PepsiCo, Aunt Jemima, Freshco Georgetown, Loblaws Brampton, RCSS Georgetown, Food Basics Guelph, Costco Guelph and Zehrs Guelph.
