Mural remembers those who gave everything

Article in the High River Times on September 29, 2011 By Robert Massey, Interim Editor

Residents were given a special chance to say thank you on Wednesday, Sept. 21 when a gut-wrenching mural passed through town.

The Portraits of Honour tour stopped at the Recplex in High River and gave locals an opportunity to gaze into the eyes of 157 men and women who gave their lives in Afghanistan.

The oil painting stands 10 feet tall and 40 feet wide and features a painting of each soldier who died, as well as a poppy pedal for each Canadian soldier who has ever died in combat serving the country.

Dignitaries from across the Foothills came to the unveiling at the Recplex as well as the mother of a fallen soldier, Senator Riley school students, a current corporal and a couple of retired corporals. This included former High River resident retired Cpl. Daniel Stegmeier, who served in Afghanistan from February to September 2008.

"This is the best way to do it (remember), it is not just a name anymore," said Stegmeier "You can put a face on it and look into their eyes, you can see they were a real person."

Stegmeier served in Afghanistan with a number of the soldiers featured on the special mural and said it was difficult to see them up there.

"I have quite a few friends up there. A few of the guys I was on tour with," he said. "It brings back a lot of good memories and it brings back a lot of feelings that are going through you at that time. It stirs up a lot of emotions."

To start the proceedings on the day, 300 students from Senator Riley school took to the streets and marched from their school up Fifth Street and down Twelfth Avenue to the Recplex carrying banners with each soldiers' face and waving Canadian flags.

As the students marched, they sang. The national anthem poured from their mouths as they proudly waved the Canadian flag and showed off their thanks to the soldiers.

"That was exceptional," said Mayor Emile Blokland. "When they turned the corner, I saw them walking down the street with the banners and it tore on my heart strings."

Blokland spoke at the opening, telling residents how much this meant to him as the mayor but also as a Canadian.

"For me this was a very emotional morning," he said afterwards. "I am so proud of this whole Portraits of Honour tour and the people that are involved with it. It is so important for us as Canadians to recognize the sacrifices of the ones on the wall but also the ongoing efforts of all the men and women who are serving today."

The tour is a Kin Canada project and came to town thanks to the efforts of the local Kinsmen and Kinettes clubs, who poured many hours into this project.

"It's hard to put it into words (what it means,)" said tour chairman for High River John Reid. "We knew what it was, we've watched video and talked to people. What's most rewarding is the fact that so many people from town (came.) Fire Department, Legion, Rotary, ask somebody to do something and they will do it."

Residents had the opportunity to hear from the mother of a lost soldier, whose son is painted onto the mural. Linda Loree, the mother of the late Cpl. Nathan Horburg, read a couple of poems and talked about what this mural means to her.

"The impact of them all together and the work and the commitment that went into that," said Loree of what struck her about the painting. "To just do it at this particular time in history when the combat mission has ended and tour (the mural) across Canada so people can almost have a ritual of grieving all those losses together rather than each separately...is fairly powerful."

Retired Cpl. Stegmeier wasn't sure what to expect when he approached the mural, after all he knew many of the faces up there, but he said this is when the whole experience really came home.

"It really starts to hit home that these people had mothers, sisters, some of them even had kids," he said. "It is just a great thing. I know it means a lot to the families and to the people who are still serving; that people remember and don't just (forget.)"

"We think we will get close to that," he said. "High River has a phenomenal reputation of stepping up to the plate and supporting things and so far we've found that."