As people gathered across Windsor-Essex to honour those who served and sacrificed, Museum Windsor offered visitors another opportunity to reflect on the region’s military history. The museum’s Chimczuk Museum location has developed a special display marking the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Legion in Windsor-Essex. Both Museum Windsor and Art Windsor-Essex also offered free admission Wednesday in honour of Remembrance Day. Matt Pritchard, education coordinator with Museum Windsor, said the Legion has played an important role in supporting veterans and bringing communities together over the past century. Following the end of World War I in 1918, the Legion received its official mandate in 1926, providing veterans with a place to find friendship, support, and a sense of belonging. “It was a place of healing,” Pritchard said in an interview with CTV News. For veterans returning from war, the opportunity to spend time with others who understood their experiences could be especially important. “People who didn’t see war couldn’t understand it,” he explained. “But to be able to have a person sit beside you, share a meal and maybe share a drink, play some cards… It was therapy.” The Legion has continued to support veterans through fundraising and community initiatives, including its annual Poppy Campaign. In a conversation about the region’s military history, Pritchard also shared the story of Corporal Charles Raymond, a Windsor-born soldier recognized by Veterans Affairs Canada as the first Canadian killed in combat during World War I. Raymond, who was 32, died on Sept. 14, 1914, while serving with the 2nd Battalion of the King’s Royal Rifle Corps, a British regiment. He had arrived in Europe earlier that year and was killed during fighting outside Paris. He left behind a widow. Pritchard said Raymond’s story is particularly striking because of his local roots, despite serving with a British unit. “It kind of makes the hairs stand on the back of your neck a little bit, because it’s a Windsor guy,” he said. During the interview, Pritchard also reflected on the history of Windsor’s Essex County War Memorial cenotaph. Originally unveiled at Giles Boulevard and Ouellette Avenue on Nov. 11, 1924, the 106-tonne granite monument was relocated to City Hall Square in 1965, where it remains a focal point for the community’s Remembrance Day ceremonies. Pritchard said the cenotaph remains an important gathering place for the community. “It’s a place to go to remember those so we can live our lives, who paid the ultimate sacrifice,” he said. “It’s a place of gathering. It’s a place of remembrance. And it’s a place to remind us that we’re standing on the shoulders of people that defended our freedom.” For Windsor resident Phil Taylor, visiting the museum after attending the Remembrance Day ceremony at the cenotaph was an opportunity to learn more about the community’s history. Taylor said it’s easy to take the freedoms people enjoy today for granted without considering the sacrifices made to protect them. “I don’t think enough goes into the idea when people are living their everyday lives that this was not something that had happened without sacrifice,” he stated. “It’s important that at least for one day out of the year, and for maybe an hour, if people do congregate to say, ‘We appreciate the sacrifice.’” For Sharon Dessaureault, Remembrance Day is also deeply personal. Her father served in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II, and she said continuing to remember him and her uncles is important. Dessaureault attended the cenotaph ceremony with Drew Setterington, who said they make a point of visiting her father’s gravesite each year to leave a poppy. He said her father, Bob, also made a point of visiting schools in his uniform to help children understand the experiences of veterans. Pritchard said it’s important to remember not only those who died during wartime, but also the veterans who returned home and continued serving their communities. He said many veterans carry a lifetime of service with them, even after leaving the military. “They might no longer be serving in the armed forces, but they’re still out serving their community in one way or the other,” he said.
