Billie Hamilton, 75, visits her husband's grave at Beechwood Cemetery’s National Military Cemetery, alongside her friend Elisabeth Carioto, 87. Hamilton’s husband Barry served for 40 years before passing away five years ago. Two of Hamilton’s grandchildren are active members of the air and navy cadets. [Photo © Kailey Schlachter]
In the midst of a surge in second-wave COVID-19 cases, Canadians paused on Nov. 11 to remember the sacrifices of soldiers who died and veterans who survived the First and Second World War, conflicts in Korea, Afghanistan and peacekeeping missions around the world. The pandemic made Remembrance Day 2020 a mostly virtual, physically distanced commemoration — a very different kind of event from the crowded gatherings typically held at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. A team of Carleton University journalism students in a senior photojournalism course — Photography in Media: Principles and Storytelling — captured some scenes of a Remembrance Day like no other.
Margot Cameron, 80, observes Remembrance Day at home in Port Perry, Ont. As a little girl in Scotland during the Second World War, she experienced “black curtain hour,” when all residents of Edinburgh had to turn their lights out to try to make it harder for German bombers to target the city. On Nov. 11, Cameron brought out pictures of her then 18 year old uncle Gibson, who was killed in France during the First World War. Another picture is of her father, Angus Cameron, who went to war after his brother was killed seeking revenge. [Photo © Jack Hurley]
The Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Memorial is always streamed live over Facebook, but there were many more people attending virtually this year compared to any other year. [Photo © Yasmeen Amer] A ceremonial motorcade drives past gathered onlookers during the Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa. [Photo © L. Manuel Baechlin] A masked Mountie stands guard at the National War Memorial. [Photo © L. Manuel Baechlin] A decorated veteran and others pause along Elgin Street. [Photo © Gillian Peebles] A Canadian Armed Forces band marches south on Elgin Street after the service at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. [Photo © Mark Bahensky] A veteran observes the wreaths placed at the National War Memorial. [Photo © Abigael J. Lynch] A man places his poppy on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier after the service at the National War Memorial. [Photo © Mark Bahensky] Lu Shing, a Canadian veteran, smiles through tears as he touches a wreath. [Photo © Abigael J. Lynch] A Canadian military official and his wife walk around the National War Memorial on Nov. 11. [Photo © Abigael J. Lynch] A woman bows her head before an array of Remembrance Day wreaths at the National War Memorial. [Photo © Harriet Smith] Members of the Royal Canadian Legion, Westboro Branch, on Remembrance Day 2020 (from left): Erana Pille, piper Evelyn Brunton, Al Leafloor and Barbara Pharand. [Photo © Phalen Tynes-MacDonald] A masked man places a poppy on a wreath at the Westboro Cenotaph after the Remembrance Day ceremony. [Photo © Phalen Tynes-MacDonald] Poppies and flowers were placed in front of the graves of loved ones at Canada’s National Military Cemetery in Beechwood Cemetery. [Photo © Kailey Schlachter] Between the Canadian Senate and the National War Memorial, a bronze statue of one of the Famous Five women’s rights campaigners is adorned with a mask. [Photo © Harriet Smith] Members of the Royal Canadian Legion salute during the Remembrance Day ceremony at Canada Place in downtown Montreal. [Photo © Morgane Wauquier] Decorations on the chest of a veteran attending the Remembrance Day ceremony in Montreal. [Photo © Morgane Wauquier] Celebration Square usually holds the Remembrance Day ceremony in Mississauga. It was empty because COVID-19 restrictions. On Nov. 11, Peel Region had the highest rate of COVID-19 cases in Canada. [Photo © Nairah Ahmed] Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie honours veterans virtually. [Photo © Nairah Ahmed] Michael VanHoek, 64, paying his respects on Remembrance Day in Mississauga. He normally attends Nov. 11 ceremonies along with hundreds of others in Celebration Square. His parents are from the Netherlands — liberated by Canadian soldiers in May 1945. [Photo © Nairah Ahmed] The Man with Two Hats memorial near Dow’s Lake represents the friendship between Canada and the Netherlands, and commemorates the Liberation of Holland by Canadian soldiers in May 1945. On Remembrance Day, the plaque at the memorial was adorned by a single poppy. [Photo © Rebecca Weston]
