Vimy Ridge Tour

Shawnigan students enjoyed a date with history, as they toured Canada’s sacred 20^thcentury military sites.

 

18 students ventured to Europe April 5-15, for a pilgrimage to some of the nation’s most important military memorials.

 

The excursion centred around an April 9^th event in France, as the Shawnigan contingent joined roughly 25,000 Canadians in celebrating the 100^th anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge.

 

While in the area, the tour also visited key military memorials, including the battlegrounds at Ypres and the Somme as well as monuments at St. Julien and Tyne Cot.

 

In addition to museums and battlegrounds from World War One, the group had the opportunity to tour memorable locales from World War Two, including the impressive American landing zone at Pointe du Hoc and the Canadian cemetery at Beny-Sur-Mer.

 

An unforgettable cemetery, Beny-Sur-Mer also includes the grave of Shawnigan graduate William Ferguson, who died heroically two days after taking part in the D-Day invasions.

 

“I’ve never seen anything like that,” said Grade 10 student Josh W. after the group’s visit to Beny Sur Mer. “This stuff can sometimes seem pretty far off when you lack context, but seeing his grave was really powerful. It really made it hit home for me.”

 

The tour also included stops to inspiring cultural settings, including historic Saint-Malo and charming Honfleur.

 

After starting the trip in Brussels, the tour concluded with a whirlwind day in Paris, where students enjoyed some free time to wander in the Quartier Latin and visit some of the world’s most famous monuments.

 

“To walk the actual ground where the 20^th century, and ultimately the 21^st century, was born is a profound and humbling experience ,” says tour leader Tom Lupton. “Our students have been given the opportunity to reach out and touch the past and so better understand the ties that bind us to our ancestors and hopefully better appreciate the echoes of our actions. It was a trip of a lifetime that will stay with all who took part in it for a lifetime.”