2025 Remembrance Day Special, presented by The Everything Red Deer Podcast

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Ray Stuart is grateful for having the chance to represent his country for decades in the Canadian Armed Forces.

The current second vice president of the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 35 (Red Deer), he filled out an application form in 1977 after attending a Remembrance Day ceremony just months prior.

Stuart joined the 749 Communications Troop, under the Canadian Forces Communication Command, and spent the next 27 years, through 2004, with the same unit.

Stuart went from private to chief warrant officer and retired as captain.

“Back when I started, it was the manual operation of teletype equipment. We had VHF radios and I was one of the technicians that worked on the old equipment. It was quite interesting. All that stuff is in museums now,” he shared in an interview.

Stuart remains involved with local cadets in Red Deer, where he was born.

“This is a time to reflect on the sacrifices individuals have given, for the country to get together and not celebrate, but to remember the sacrifices that have enabled us to live the lifestyles we are living today.”

Stuart often speaks with students in local schools.

Cindy Tong, a grade 12 student at Hunting Hills High School, shared her thoughts.

Cindy Tong and Vrinda Chalyguina, students at Hunting Hills High School in Red Deer. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

“Remembrance Day to me isn’t just about wearing a poppy or looking back at history. It’s about taking the necessary time to honour the people behind it. It’s about remembering the soldiers who were my age when they first left to fight, and how they left everything they’ve ever known behind to fight for the lives we live today,” she says.

“It’s about honouring their courage, but also recognizing the cost and importance of peace. By remembering the past, we learn to shape a better future.”

Another way that’s being done in Red Deer this year is with the installation of a Remembrance Crosswalk at entrance #2 to Parkland Mall.

That’s where Veterans Voices of Canada (VVC), which conducts an annual Flags of Remembrance ceremony, opened a military museum a couple years ago.

VVC Founder Al Cameron says he heard some desire from the community to install such a crosswalk, as has been done in other locales.

The management at Parkland gave him the a-okay, then he had materials donated from Cloverdale Paint, and Budget Signs.

This new remembrance crosswalk has been installed at Parkland Mall in Red Deer. (Supplied/Veterans Voices of Canada)

“[This crosswalk] tells me that people realize we have to make sure our veterans, past and present, are remembered,” he says. “The more of these crosswalks, the better, especially for new Canadians who are coming in, because [many] aren’t aware of what remembrance is or what we do here in Canada [for it]. It gets them asking questions.”

Hear these conversations more in-depth, plus other special Remembrance Day coverage in the latest episode of The Everything Red Deer Podcast which you can hear on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Pocket Casts, Omny, Audacy, or on rdnewsNOW.com’s podcast page.

Read about Indigenous veterans stories here, with Indigenous Veterans Day taking place Nov. 8.

Learn more about the Red Deer War Memorials Tour.

by Josh Hall | @Vancan19

2025 Remembrance Day Special, presented by The Everything Red Deer Podcast

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