This week, St. Michaels University School's annual Remembrance Day Service united our campuses in solemn reflection.
We gathered to honour the lives affected by the tragedies of war, including those of our own alumni—our "Old Boys"—who once walked these halls and later served in times of conflict. We came together to carry forward the lessons of the past, to hold space for the sacrifices made, and to value the peace we are fortunate to experience today.
In keeping with tradition, SMUS Chaplain Keven Fletcher led both the services at the Junior School and at the Richmond Road campus, offering words to guide us in this important act of remembrance.
Remembrance Day 2024
Let us begin by being grateful.
Grateful that parts of our school haven’t been reduced to rubble.
Grateful that air-raid sirens won’t send us scrambling to shelters today.
Grateful that there aren’t new names to be read aloud this morning,
with candles being extinguished one at a time on a fourth black stand.
We don’t often express gratitude for things not happening.
Yet when we look out at our world, we can see place after place
where people dream of having such grounds for celebration.
It may seem as if those lands are far away,
but I can assure you that in this international community,
there are many among us with ties to such places:
ties to aunts and nephews, and parents and cousins and friends.
Know that our hearts go out to you and your loved ones.
Through this ceremony we mark Remembrance Day.
Its purpose is not to talk about sides or victories; no.
Rather, we are here to remember those who died in the wars,
the names of our alumni standing in for legions of others, military and civilian.
We are here to remember profound loss,
so that we know the full value of working against further loss.
As we talked about in Chapel, there are aspects of this ceremony
that very much reflect the life of our Old Boys.
And there are elements
that capture the voice of our current students.
In a very real way, for this next hour,
the generations of our community share space together.
I’m sure that those from the past would join us in our gratitude
for the safety and peace we experience.
Let us in turn open our minds to the losses they endured,
so we might grasp the messages they would have us hear.
