Mr. Speaker, on Remembrance Day last year, during the ceremony at Veteran Elementary School, Private First Class Dave Pennington shared his experiences in the Canadian Armed Forces. Some of the stories were sad—setbacks and loss—and others were of victory during World War II.
When questioned about his medals, he also lamented that his medals had been lost or destroyed. So moved were the students by this brave soldier's story that they began working to replace his missing medals. On March 28, the students at Veteran Elementary School invited Private First Class Pennington, his family and me to their school. As a total surprise, the students presented Dave Pennington with the replacement medals.
A veteran shares his story of standing up for Canada's freedom, then a new generation of Canadians is moved to honour a Canadian war veteran in a special way. Then the Government of Canada assists these young students by replacing the medals.
Congratulations to Private First Class David Pennington and to the students of Veteran Elementary School in Veteran, Alberta.