News Release
November 9, 2010
For Immediate Release
Film screening, online vigil, part of Dufferin-Peel’s Remembrance Day commemorations
Students, staff and community members from Dufferin-Peel Catholic schools will pay tribute to war veterans and current Canadian Forces through special events and activities including, school assemblies, visits from veterans, art projects, interactive war displays, an online vigil, music, and among other events, a film screening of the feature length documentary, If I Should Fall.
“Many of the tributes our schools have planned this year give our students a glimpse of what war is like through first-hand stories, from both men and women who have served, and from testaments of family and friends who have lost loved ones,” says John Kostoff, Director of Education for the board. “It’s truly fantastic that our students and schools continue to embrace the traditions of Remembrance Day and have enthusiastically added modern creative touches. I think the interactive elements really help students understand the sacrifices made by our veterans, and the men and women currently serving. It helps us understand and appreciate how lucky we are to live in Canada, with so many opportunities.”
Leading up to Remembrance Day, students from schools across the board wrote letters and cards for Canadian troops in Afghanistan, which will arrive in Afghanistan by November 11.
On November 11, staff at the Catholic Education Centre will hold their annual Remembrance Day liturgical service at 10:45 a.m. where members of the St. Joan of Arc school band and chamber choir will perform. A moment of silence will also be observed at 11 a.m. to remember.
Students at All Saints Catholic School in Mississauga will join in an online vigil from November 5 - 12, where the names of the 68,000 Canadians who died during WWI will be projected in the school via a continuous stream from the world wide web, originating in Belgium. Part of a larger scale project in schools across Canada and Europe, this online vigil attests to the huge scope of war in a common medium that connects people world-wide.
A museum-like exhibit with over a thousand authentic war artifacts will be on display at Christ the King Catholic School, November 9 - 11 for the public to touch, see and explore. The exhibit is an annual creation of Brian Masson, a teacher at the school, who also coordinates the school’s Remembrance Day ceremony.
On November 12, Iona Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga, will host a screening of the feature length documentary, If I Should Fall, a film about former Dufferin-Peel student, Trooper Marc Diab of the Royal Canadian Dragoons, who served in Afghanistan before being killed by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in 2009. The film will also be shown to Canadian, American and Coalition Troops in Afghanistan and Bahrain on Remembrance Day.
Many Dufferin-Peel Catholic schools have also planned liturgies, assemblies and other special events, including visits from veterans and Canadian soldiers to mark Remembrance Day.
A detailed list of school Remembrance Day events is available on the board’s website.
The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board is one of largest and most diverse school districts in Ontario, with approximately 86,000 students in 145 schools throughout Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon and Orangeville. With over 10,000 employees, the board is also one of the largest employers in the region.
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Media Contact: Julia Seeratan, Communications Officer
(905) 890-0708 ext. 24278