Following the path of WWI and II soldiers

Following the path of WWI and II soldiers. Parry Sound High School students march into Green Park, in London, England, on April 6 to the Canada Memorial with a flag bearing the names of Parry Sounders who died in WW2. Karen Longwell/Metroland

LONDON, ENGLAND – Parry Sound High School students are walking in the footsteps of war veterans on a historical tour in England and France this month.
The 40 students joined more than 4,000 Canadian students, teachers and chaperones from across Canada at the Vimy Memorial in France on April 9 for a ceremony and march commemorating the 95th anniversary of the battle at Vimy Ridge.
On the road to both World Wars, Canadian soldiers trained in England. Approximately 1,300 Canadian students and teachers, including Parry Sound, remembered those soldiers in a march and ceremony in London, England on April 6. The students gathered at Horse Guard’s Parade, proceeded down Horse Guard’s Road past Buckingham Palace to the Canada Memorial in Green Park. The procession was met by sunny skies and mild spring weather.
A popular tourist area, many stopped and watched as the young Canadians marched.
Grade 12 Parry Sound students Alora Scali, 18, and Dan Engelking, 18, said the tour was a great learning experience. Seeing sights related to the First and Second World War made history more accessible, said Alora.
“This puts it all in perspective,” said Alora at the Imperial War Museum in London.
Other sights the students visited included the Churchill War Rooms, the London Eye and Westminster Abbey.
The battle at Vimy Ridge is a point of Canadian pride as the triumph was one of the most complete offensive victories up to that point in the First World War, according to information from Veterans Affairs Canada. After the success Vimy, Canadians became well known for their skills in offensive operations in the war.
The memorial, set on the highest point of the 14-kilometre long Vimy Ridge, is a spectacular tribute to those who lost their lives in the First World War.
Designed by Canadian sculptor and architect Walter Seymour Allward, the monument took eleven years to build. The grounds surrounding the monument are scared with shell holes from the artillery bombardment and mine craters from the fierce underground battle.
(Metroland photographer/reporter Karen Longwell is overseas with EF Educational Tours covering the 95th Anniversary of the battle at Vimy Ridge.)

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