MI honours Merchant Navy veterans with special ceremony

The Marine Institute and the Canadian Merchant Navy Veterans Association hosted a special ceremony on Sunday, September 12 to honour the 13th anniversary of the unveiling of a Merchant Navy Memorial at MI

Sunday, September 12, 2010

The ceremony attracted a large crowd looking to honour the fallen Newfoundland Merchant Marines who served on British, Canadian and American Merchant Navy ships during World War II. Included in the audience were Merchant Navy veterans and their families, as well as families of those Merchant Navy seamen lost during the war. The ceremony was hosted by Captain J.J. Strong and included greetings from the Honourable John Crosbie, Lieutenant Governor, Newfoundland and Labrador; Bob Ridgley, Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Shannie Duff, Deputy Mayor, City of St. John’s; Dr. Reeta Tremblay, Vice- President (Academic), Memorial University; Bruce Ferguson, national president, Canadian Merchant Navy Veterans’ Association; and Glenn Blackwood, executive director, Marine Institute.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held in the Marine Institute gymnasium. “I want to thank the Merchant Navy veterans who joined us for the ceremony, it was truly my pleasure to speak before them,” said Blackwood. “Their sacrifices and the sacrifices of their fallen comrades are too great to ever truly thank them enough and it is for them that this monument was constructed.”

The Merchant Navy Memorial was unveiled at the Marine Institute on August 29, 1997 to celebrate the Merchant Navy veterans who served on Canadian, British and Allied merchant ships during World War II. More than 330 Newfoundland Merchant seamen, including one woman, lost their lives during the war.

“Each of these people is honoured on MI memorial and there is no group of people more deserving of such admiration,” Blackwood said. “It is these men and women that legendary British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once called ‘The finest small boatmen in the world.’ Their bravery will be remembered forever and I feel privileged to have their names commemorated on a memorial that stands on Marine Institute grounds.”

Newfoundland Merchant seamen served on Merchant Navy vessels carrying supplies, food, weapons, and other goods across the Atlantic to Europe throughout World War II. These ships were under a continuous threat of attack from enemy planes and submarines, particularly during the height of the Battle of the Atlantic from 1940 to 1943. A number of Newfoundland Merchant marines were too old to serve in the British, Canadian or American Navies, while others were too young, but they still found a way to contribute to a cause worth fighting for, said Blackwood.

“Their courage had no boundaries,” he said. “That is why it is so important to honour these people and remember the contribution they made to the society in which we live today.” Although constructed in 1997, the Marine Institute memorial was later expanded to include the 337 names the Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who died serving in the Canadian, American and Royal British navies during World War II.

“These two groups were united in fighting for a common cause, and now they are united on common ground,” said Blackwood.

Merchant Navy Veterans Day is celebrated on Sept. 3 of each year throughout Canada and other Commonwealth countries. To celebrate the dedication of the MI memorial and to commemorate Merchant Navy Veterans Day, Sept. 12 was chosen this year as the date for the Marine Institute’s ceremony.

“Since this memorial was constructed, we have gathered every year to honour these men and women,” Blackwood said. “We will continue to host these ceremonies for many years to come, and we will never forget the sacrifices of the heroic Merchant Navy and Navy seamen who served so proudly and bravely during World War II.”