New Naval Monument to Honour Those Lost in The Battle of the Atlantic
The Officers and Crew of London’s Naval Division, HMCS Prevost, The Naval Officers Association of Canada, London Branch, and the Royal Canadian Naval Association, London Branch announce the dedication of the Battle of the Atlantic Memorial Garden. The dedication will take place during the Battle of the Atlantic Ceremony on Sunday, 2 May 2010 beginning at 1:00 p.m. at HMCS Prevost in London, Ontario.
The Battle of the Atlantic Memorial Garden will be registered as a Canadian Military Memorial, and will be open to the public. It will be a stunning and moving memorial, created with extreme gratitude, for those who made the supreme sacrifice and whose final resting places cannot be marked by graves.
The memorial garden will be built into the grass hillside at HMCS Prevost. The grass will eventually be removed, and replaced with a ‘sea’ of creeping blue phlox. This is a ground cover which blooms a brilliant blue from early spring through mid summer. Across this garden, from west to east, will be a ‘convoy’ of 25 blue granite stones. Each stone will be engraved with the name of a Royal Canadian Navy ship which was lost during the Battle of the Atlantic. The date that each ship was lost will also be engraved on the stone. There will be a stone honouring the sacrifice of the Merchant Navy. These stones will be strategically placed according to the date of their sinking. Walking at the base of the hillside you will begin with HMCS Fraser in June of 1940 and end with HMCS Esquimalt in April of 1945.
We anticipate a dignitary filled dedication of the garden during the ceremony in May. This is a great way to celebrate the Canadian Navy Centennial year of 2010.
For further information please contact:
Naval Cadet David Lewis, HMCS Prevost Public Affairs Representative at (519) 660-5296 david.lewis@forces.gc.ca http://www.boamemorialgarden.com/
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