Summerland Credit Union is marking Remembrance Day by donating funds to produce an additional eight street banners to honour Summerlanders who died in the First World War.
鈥淎s a Summerland business that supports our community鈥檚 history, we are proud to be part of this impactful project,鈥� said Erin Trainer, Summerland Credit Union marketing coordinator.
鈥淭he banners serve as a reminder of the tragedies of war and ensure that we never forget those who gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy today.鈥�
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Last year, the credit union committed to purchasing 16 banners over two years to help expand Summerland鈥檚 Remembrance Day Banner Project. Summerland now has a collection of 73 banners that are being installed on lampposts in early November.
鈥淭his donation honours fallen soldiers who do not yet have a banner. Unfortunately, we don鈥檛 have photos for all those who served in the First World War, but it鈥檚 important they be recognized. Their banners will feature a silhouette, along with their names and birth and death dates,鈥� said David Gregory, one of the project coordinators.
He added that even without a photo, there is a story behind each name.
For example, Capt. J. Laurence Higgin鈥檚 family moved to Summerland in 1909 and lived in Prairie Valley. He enlisted with the 10th Gurkha Rifles and was involved with the eight-month-long Gallipoli campaign. He was killed on June 29, 1915 at the age of 33.
His name is also remembered on the Helles Memorial in Turkey along with more than 21,000 other soldiers.
The Remembrance Day Banner project was started in 2012. Gregory says it is a work in progress, adding that there is now a banner for every soldier on the Summerland cenotaph except two who require further research. The banners were made locally by Interior Inkworks.
Names on the new banners include:
Martin Joyce 1872-1917
Frederick Russell Walker 1887-1917
Thomas Edward Pares 1885-1917
Charles Edward Russell Hall 1896-1918
Richard 鈥楧ick鈥� Heron 1885-1916
J. Laurence Higgin 1882-1915
David J. McIntosh 1897-1916
James Andrews 1876-1918
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