Sarnians seeking meticulously researched information about the many sacrifices made by local citizens during times of war can now educate themselves by taking a leisurely stroll in the city’s scenic Veterans Park.
In November, the City of Sarnia installed the last of eight storyboards which detail the remarkable contributions of local individuals who served their country in numerous roles, in conflicts ranging from the Boer War to Canadian Forces serving in the Afghanistan War as well as virtually everything else in between.
The brainchild of Lou Giancarlo, Tom Slater and Tom St. Amand – who were all involved in creating the sweeping, three-volume Sarnia War Remembrance Project, a 1,200-plus page paean to the Sarnia-Lambton’s war dead and their valiant contributions to Canada’s war efforts – the purpose of the storyboards is to educate and enlighten both residents and visitors about the courage of ordinary men and women from the area who answered the call of duty, located in a serene, reflective and tranquil setting.
“This all came out of the Sarnia War Remembrance Project, which was done in 2014,” Slater said.
“Before that nobody really knew anything about the contributions of local people,” added Giancarlo. “Tom and I are both retired teachers and at St. Pat’s, where we taught, there was no indication of any of the soldiers who had fought or any of the sacrifices made, no record of the people who never came back. But we knew that the city punched above its weight for so many years.”
“There was nothing,” said Slater. “The only thing we got was what was on the cenotaph. But that started the ball rolling. We started doing research...and that’s where the project…and eventually these storyboards came from.”
With the help of the city, numerous community groups, individuals and businesses – including the First Hussars, Enbridge, the Sarnia Historical Society, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 62 and the city’s Parks Department – Giancarlo and Slater researched the history, St. Amand edited the words and Ken Hall designed the alluring, informative and weather-resistant storyboards.
Their inaugural storyboard, which chronicled the history of Veterans Park itself, was installed with great fanfare in the park in November 2016. Since then, additional storyboards were added to illuminate Sarnia-Lambton’s role in times of conflict, including displays memorializing Sarnians’ roles in Vimy Ridge (May 2017), the First and Second World Wars (Oct. 2018), the Korean War (Dec. 2021), Canadian Forces in the Afghanistan War as well as Peacekeeping and Service at Home (April 2022).
Along with the addition of the storyboards, Veterans Park underwent a transformation of sorts since 2016, with various groups contributing to the relocation of the historical Big Tom cannon, the installation of Afghanistan Light Armoured Vehicle Monument, the restoration of the cenotaph, a new sign facing Wellington Street, as well as the addition of gardens, decorative memorial benches, lights, landscaping, security cameras, poppy gardens and trees.
For their eighth and final storyboard, the volunteer group decided to focus their attention on one of Canada’s least well-known conflicts, the Boer War, which took place in what is now South Africa in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Fittingly, the storyboard sits in front of Veterans Park’s Boer War Memorial Fountain, a monument which was erected as a result of fundraising by local citizens and schoolchildren in 1908 in order to honour the 16 hometown volunteers who had fought for the British Empire.
“We had the money for one last board, so we thought this war and the sacrifices made deserved to be acknowledged as well,” Giancarlo said. “During our research, we found out that there were little kids raising money for this memorial. It was a really big thing that Sarnia was able to do for the veterans.”
While the Boer War was Canada’s first foreign war, it was unlike any of the wars that they later fought, Slater said.
“You realize that the Boer War wasn’t like World War One or World War Two, England wasn’t being threatened. They wanted to expand their empire,” he said. “A lot of innocent people died.”
“I also learned about how controversial it was at the time because the French and many immigrants said, ‘why are we going overseas to fight for the British Empire?’” Slater continued.
“Locally, they raised the volunteers very quickly,” Giancarlo added. “I was surprised when I read that.”
Of the sixteen Sarnians who went across the Atlantic to fight, only one perished: Daniel Crone, a member of the Second Canadian contingent. He died of enteric fever, much like many of his compatriots who didn’t return home.
“Most of the (Canadians) who died over there died because of disease rather than combat,” Slater said.
With the final storyboard in place, Slater and Giancarlo say their mission to honour Sarnia’s fallen in Veterans Park has finally come to an end.
“For Veterans Park, I think we’re done,” Giancarlo said. “And we have to say, the city and so many community members have contributed to how this park looks and the feel that this park has now. This has been a major community effort.”
“We’re really happy that we’ve been a part of this, but the whole community has been part of this,” he continued. “We’ve met a lot of great people along the way. We are retired teachers and we thought we could do something for the community.”
“We wanted to honour all these people, whether it was the Sarnians who volunteered for the Boer War or soldiers who went to Afghanistan,” Slater said. “All these people served and sacrificed; we wanted their stories to be remembered.”