Nearly 150 people attended a Remembrance Day Service at the Chesterfield Cenotaph and Cemetery on Sunday, November 8, 2026.
This year’s service, which has been held annually since the end of the First World War, featured a new addition. After standing for the pre-service vigil at the cenotaph, members of the Warhorse Veterans Motorcycle Club marched into formation for the main ceremony, later serving as escorts during the wreath-laying.
With everyone in place, Karl Burden then welcomed those in attendance.
“Today we gather as a community to remember those who have dedicated their lives to protecting our freedom,” he said. “This has been a particularly difficult year for our armed forces with the recent tragedy at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, so we remember especially the four soldiers who died, as well as those who are struggling to recover from very serious burns. On behalf of the Plattsville and District Heritage Society and the Chesterfield Cemetery Board, we’re glad you could join us for this annual service of remembrance here at the Chesterfield Cenotaph.
Following the land acknowledgement, Burden continued, “The Chesterfield Cenotaph was built in 1920 through the hard work and generosity of our local community to honour their loved ones who never returned from World War One. For over 100 years, this remembrance service has been held on the Sunday before Remembrance Day, and we are proud to carry on that tradition today. To every veteran, past and present, to every family who has shared in the sacrifice of service, we remember. We are grateful, and we will not forget. As generations pass, our responsibility remains. We will remember.”
The ceremony then continued with “O Canada,” the playing of the “Last Post,” and two minutes of silence, followed by the playing of the “Rouse.”
Before the laying of the wreaths, Marg Schiedel read John McCrae’s “In Flanders Fields.” Subsequently, Asher Benbow recited the “Act of Remembrance; Commitment to Remember,” and Anna Follings presented “The Torch is Ours.”
“We were not there. We did not hear the battles. We did not experience the long separation from home. We did not wait for letters or telegrams carrying news from far away. But we can remember,” Follings recited. “We can learn their names. We can listen to their stories. We can honour those who served and those who continue to serve, and we can understand that the freedoms we enjoy came at a tremendous cost. The responsibility for remembrance now belongs to us. We accept that responsibility. We will tell their stories. We will honour their service. We will remember them.”
Veterans and those who died for our freedoms were then honoured with the wreath-laying ceremony. Guests laying wreaths during the service included several community members, as well as Oxford MP Arpan Khanna, Oxford MPP Ernie Hardeman, Blandford-Blenheim Mayor Mark Peterson, and family members of Pte. Tyler Todd of Bright, Ont., who died in Afghanistan in 2010.
Wreaths were laid in honour of individuals and groups spanning generations of military service, including Pte. Todd. Tributes were also paid to the 10,000 Canadians who fought in the U.S. Civil War, the men and women who served in both world wars, the Korean War and the war in Afghanistan, as well as current service members and those who supported the war efforts at home. Wreaths were also placed for all those who served and are buried in Chesterfield Cemetery and whose names are on the cenotaph.
After the laying of 16 the wreaths, the ceremony continued on with Meghan Bunce’s performance of John Newton’s “Amazing Grace,” followed by Rev. Jennifer Canning and Pastor Gavin Wark’s closing prayer. The service then concluded with the playing of “God Save the King” and the Warhorse Veterans Motorcycle Club’s march off.
As many attendees headed inside for light refreshments and to look at the Plattsville and District Heritage Society’ Remembrance Day display, Denise Tew, President and Chair of the local heritage society said she was pleased with the overall service.
“This service has been held every year since the end of the First World War and the heritage society took it over about 20 years ago, so it’s pretty amazing that we can still carry on this tradition and have such a great turnout,” she said. “We always try to have younger people take part in the service, and it’s just so beautiful and meaningful that they get to be a part of it. These kids, they don’t know what war is, thank goodness, but they don’t know what people have gone through and we need to teach them to remember.”
When asked about the addition of the Warhorse Veterans Motorcycle Club, Tew said it came about rather fortuitously.
“I met a bunch of these gentlemen at our Plattsville 175 event, and I happened to get a call from one of them about wanting to do a vigil at the cenotaph. I didn’t realise there were going to be about 20 of them here and it was just so beautiful to watch them,” she said. “People have this stigma about motorcycle clubs, but all of these men are veterans. If they didn’t fight together, they met each other afterwards and supported one another, which is so important. They’re just a lovely group of men and it was amazing to have them.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
