Honourable Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for the invitation to the Royal Canadian Legion to appear before you today to speak on commemorative activities in the 21st century. On behalf of our dominion president, Comrade Patricia Varga, it is a pleasure to be with you here today.
We will make our statement in English, but you should have copies in both French and English.
I'm Brad White, the dominion secretary of the Royal Canadian Legion. Since my arrival at the Legion in 1998, I have been involved in pretty well every major commemorative activity the Legion has participated in, as well as being the past director of the national ceremony.
Accompanying me today is Mr. Steven Clark. He is my director of administration and he is also the director of the national ceremony.
As guardians of remembrance in Canada, the Royal Canadian Legion works tirelessly to keep alive the memory of the more than 117,000 Canadians who have fallen in the military service of Canada. But commemorating is more than just providing Canadians with an opportunity to stand in collective reminiscence of our fallen comrades at occasions throughout the year.
Commemoration is an appreciation of the past, an understanding of how past actions in wars, missions, conflicts, and peacetime will impact future generations. We recall our moments of triumph, and of course of tragedy, of excitement and despair. It is this understanding and appreciation that enables us to remember and honour our veterans. Instrumental to effective commemoration is of course effective communication. It is this philosophy that has led to a number of milestone programs and projects of the Legion, as we strive to never forget the deeds of the fallen and to perpetuate remembrance into the future.