More than one million Canadians served in the Second World War, men and women, in roles at home and overseas. Forty-five thousand died, 55,000 were wounded. We don’t know exactly how many Second World War veterans are still with us, but the number is small and shrinking every year. It’s now just a fraction of the 39,700 who helped us mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the war, five years ago. Eighty years later, even the very youngest Second World War veterans – those who were underage when they joined up – are in their mid-to-late 90s. Others are closer to 100 or more. Anyone who actually remembers the outbreak of the conflict in 1939 is 90 and older. Even those who remember its end in 1945 are in their mid-80s. All of which is to say the number of Canadians able to share their firsthand accounts of the war – here and over there – is small. Given current events, and the unmistakable echoes of some of the conditions that preceded the war, it’s more important than ever that we listen to those few who can remember. But it’s also essential that younger people acquaint themselves with what happened before, during and after the Second World War, so that they, and we, can properly respond to current conditions, with the benefit of the experience and hard-won sacrifices of what truly was the greatest generation. As Nov. 11 approaches, those who cannot remember… are morally obliged to learn.
