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Canadians are getting ready to mark a milestone
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Two Ex cadets from Classes of ’65 & ’66 Return to college for 50th anniversary of the Canadian flag
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An Ex Cadet remembers days leading up to 15 Feb 1965
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Canadians trade fire with ISIS as military waits on possible extension
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USAFA Graduation Ceremony Moved to New Day to Save Money
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DND looks to spend $17 million to maintain Dwyer Hill commando base
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Veterans Affairs minister promises change, but says new charter is here to stay
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“I THINK WE SHOULD TAKE THAT ACT OF COURAGE AND SAY THANK YOU AND TURN AROUND AND NOTE HOW OFTEN AND HOW OMNIPRESENT THE CANADIAN FLAG IS HERE — AND ABOARD.”
3572 MGen Frank Norman (ret) – Article – short CKWS video
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“I WAS ACCUSTOM TO THE OLD ONE AND I DECIDED I WAS GOING TO GET USE TO THE NEW ONE. I SUPPOSE WE ALL HAD MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT IT. I’VE GROWN TO LOVE IT.”
6338 PHILIP BURY – Article – short CKWS video
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An Ex Cadet remembers days leading up to 15 Feb 1965
As a very personal addendum to issue 6/2015’s article 1965 Flag Day – it is not every day I open e-Veritas to encounter a piece of my own writing from a half century ago!
My article on the new national flag’s unfurling was originally submitted to the cadet newspaper of the day, The Marker. I was surprised when it did not appear, but never pursued the point with the editor, 6907 Bill Fenrick. Only when the 1965 Review came out did I learn that my first (and last) attempt at ceremonious writing had not been jettisoned.
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The e-Veritas photo of the Red Ensign being lowered, with my write up beneath, are taken from the 1965 Review yearbook. There the photo was titled “Down With The Old”. Underneath my write up the Review had another photo titled “Up With The New” – but no Maple Leaf flag is visible. The photo was taken at a left turn pointing towards Yeo Hall, and showed the base of the mast, with no person visible – and no flag.
It was no secret at the time that conflicting emotions ran high within the Cadet Wing on the flag issue. In the days before the ceremony a story made the rounds that a prominent fourth year cadet was intending to refuse to attend. Whether this was so, or mere cadet scuttlebutt, I never did learn – but I observed that he was there for the new flag’s inauguration.
I have occasionally wondered whether the flag omitting photograph was inserted into the yearbook as a deliberate parting shot lamenting the change.
My homage to the flag raising ceremony deliberately avoided mentioning the overly orange tint to a flag that was supposed to be bright red. I heard later that there had been some problem with the initial dye lot. That was rectified, and eventually we were seeing our new flag in its correct hue.
A cartoon I drew had already appeared prior to the ceremony, in The Marker of January 22, 1965. Crude artwork, but I thought Dean of Arts Dr. Stanley’s well known role in the design of the new national flag merited a genial spoof. The stylized “dAH” initials of the artist are my own but with a lower case “d”, used back then for various artistic and literary endeavours. The only thought of concealment was hiding the amount of my product going into The Marker.
A few weeks later I got around to asking editor Bill for the original artwork. He told me that Dr. Stanley had asked him for it, and now had the cartoon framed on his office wall.
When Colonel Stanley died in 2002 I wrote to his widow asking about the cartoon. I included for the family’s benefit an explanation of what was obvious to any cadet at the time, that the sewer is a first year cadet burdened with an important but unwelcome task. I received a courteous reply, saying that the framed artwork had remained in “George’s” study to the time of his death.
A year or so later I was in Ottawa, and used the opportunity to visit the national archives. I wanted to check into an aspect of the new flag’s raising on Parliament Hill. A classmate had recently told me that a film clip of the Ottawa ceremony showed a couple of figures who might have been uniformed cadets. A senior archivist explained that he was familiar with the film, and stated the figures were RCMP members.
In casual conversation with the archivist I mentioned my cartoon and my letter to Mrs. Stanley. He said, “I know, I have them.” Not long before my visit Dr. Stanley’s papers had been donated to the archives. I asked how about giving me my drawing back. He smiled, and slowly shook his head.
7000 David Haas
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Caption: 2859 Dr, Jack Pike, Stella Stanley, MP Ted Hsu and S124 Dr Ron Haycock pose with The Red Ensign and Canadian Flag at The Royal Military College of Canada Senior Staff Mess to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Flag.13 Feb 2015.
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Canadians trade fire with ISIS as military waits on possible extension
“[ISIS] leadership is struggling to sustain military efforts. Morale is steadily declining, particularly in areas of sustained coalition and Iraqi security forces operations,”
18127 Capt (N) Paul Forget from the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadians Joint Operations Command – Article
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AFA Graduation Ceremony Moved to New Day to Save Money
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DND looks to spend $17 million to maintain Dwyer Hill commando base
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Veterans Affairs minister promises change, but says new charter is here to stay
“If he’s raising an issue where Veterans Affairs hasn’t dealt with him in a way that’s respectful or responsive, it’s not just him, there would be other people out there like this,” O’Toole said. “So I think we can learn from Paul’s situation.”
Veterans Affairs Minister 19894 Erin O’Toole – Article