KITCHENER, Ontario: The annual Sikh Remembrance Day Ceremony was held on Sunday, November 5 at the military grave of Canadian World War I hero, Private Buckam Singh in Kitchener, Ontario. This year, chief guests included National Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan and Major-General Simon Hetherington, Commander, Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre Headquarters.
Almost 300 people including Canadian Forces soldiers, cadets, police officers, Royal Canadian legionnaires, veterans and elected officials from all levels of government gathered for the ceremony, weathering the rain at the only military grave in Canada of a Sikh soldier from the world wars.
“We owe our gratitude and our prosperity to the giants who give their lives for this country. Pvt. Buckam Singh is representative of all those who have served not only in the past but of those who are serving today. Pvt. Buckam Singh and all those who gave everything for us gave us a gift – a gift of freedom, a gift of prosperity,” said Sajjan.
Sikhs have a long tradition of military service. Over 83,000 Sikhs of the British Indian Army gave their lives for the defense of freedom in the two World Wars, fighting alongside their Canadian, American and British allies.
Now in its ninth year, the Sikh Remembrance Day Ceremony has become one of the largest annual gatherings of Sikh soldiers and veterans in North America.
Wounded twice on the battlefields of France in WWI, Private Buckam Singh of the 20th Central Ontario Canadian Infantry Battalion was one of only nine Sikh soldiers allowed to serve in the Canadian military in WWI.
With the discovery of his war medal and military grave nearly 100 years later, the Sikh community has reclaimed a forgotten son and Canada has reclaimed a war hero.