More than 40 Canadian Forces heroes honoured during traditional ‘Trisagion’ ceremony
A dozen or so families from the Montreal Hellenic community paid homage on Saturday Dec. 7 to more than 40 Greek-Canadian veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces whose remains lay buried at the National Field of Honour on Montreal’s West Island.
Hosted by Lac-Saint-Louis Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia and Vimy Liberal MP Annie Koutrakis, the traditional Greek Orthodox “Trisagion” service honored the memory of 44 Greek-Canadian heroes.
First time, but not the last
Although it was the first time a ceremony was held for Greek-Canadian veterans of Canada’s military at the National Field of Honour, the organizers have pledged to turn it into an annual event.
“Before today, we’ve never done a ceremony to recognize Greek veterans buried here,” Koutrakis said in an interview with Newsfirst Multimedia.
“And being of the Greek community, I thought what a wonderful way to pay our respects and let people know that there are 44 Greek veterans and family members buried here,” she added.
“I know that the families we reached out to are thrilled to be here,” said Koutrakis, noting that students from the Socrates-Demosthenes School were among those who turned up to pay their respects.
Upkeeping the cemetery
Koutrakis and Scarpaleggia have been working closely with The Last Post Fund. a non-profit dedicated to ensuring no veteran is denied a dignified funeral and burial. It was while focusing on this task that the two MPs became aware of the Greek-Canadian veterans buried at the Field of Honour.
Organizers have pledged to turn the ceremony into an annual event
They want to help smooth the way for the federal government to take on more of the Last Post foundation’s responsibilities for upkeeping the military cemetery in Pointe Claire.
The National Field of Honour isn’t owned by the federal government, even though it is the largest military cemetery in Canada and the remains of thousands of Canadian war veterans are buried there.
Canada’s largest vets’ cemetery
Since 1930, the Last Post Fund has been the exclusive operator of the National Field of Honour, although the federal government provides subsidies.
The Last Post Fund’s primary mandate is to deliver Veterans Affairs Canada’s Funeral and Burial Program which provides funeral, burial and grave marking benefits for eligible Canadian and Allied Veterans.
The Last Post Fund is supported financially by Veterans Affairs Canada and by private donations. The LPF’s Unmarked Grave Program provides military markers for unmarked Veterans’ graves.
