NEWS AND EVENTS

A First in the History of the Last Post Fund: Two Women at the Head of the Organization

8 July 2010 – Two women will now lead the destinies of the Last Post Fund, the first as National President and the second as Executive Director.

Succeeding to Lieutenant General (Ret) Louis Cuppens, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Evelyn Kelly CD, AdeC, becomes the 29th National President of the Last Post Fund. Previously, she served as Vice President - West of the organization and President of the Ontario Branch.

A native of Smiths Falls, Ontario, LCol Kelly was educated at Ottawa Civic Hospital, Ryerson Polytechnic Institute, University of Toronto and St Francis Xavier University. She holds Advanced Certification in Radiation Technology, Nursing, Anatomy and a Masters Degree in Health Services Administration. She is a member of the Board of Governors of the Great Lakes Division of the Corps of Commissionaires, President of the Toronto Unit of the Military Nursing Sisters Association of Canada and an Aide-de-Camp to the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. She volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and St John Ambulance. LCol Kelly served with the Canadian Forces Medical Services as Nursing Officer, Commanding Officer of 25 Medical Company (now 25 Field Ambulance) and Medical Advisor to 32 Canadian Brigade Group. Her hobbies, which include fencing, took her to the Olympics in Montreal in 1976 and recently as a Torch Bearer for the Vancouver Olympics.

In August 2010, Ms. Carol Genest will take office as Executive Director of the Last Post Fund, succeeding to Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Dominique Jamet.

Fluent in both official languages, Ms. Genest has enjoyed a 20-year career with the Government of Canada, working with the departments of the former Secretary of State for Canada, Treasury Board Secretariat, Canadian Heritage, Parks Canada and most recently with Veterans Affairs Canada. She also worked for three years with the Government of Yukon. Her career, mostly in official languages, funding programs and management, has taken her to Calgary, Alberta; Yellowknife, Northwest Territories; Ottawa and Cornwall, Ontario; Whitehorse, Yukon; Charlottetown, PEI and with this appointment, Montreal, Québec.

The Last Post Fund

The Last Post Fund Governing Council 2010-2011

As of 8 June 2010, the Last Post Fund Governing Council members are: First row, Ms. Carol Genest*, Veterans Affairs Canada; RAdm Barry Keeler (Treasurer); Mr. Arthur “Chip” Hair (Honorary President); LGen Lou Cuppens (Past President); LCol Evelyn Kelly (National President); LT Donald Newell*; LCol Daniel O’Connor (Vice-President East). Second row: LCol Kenneth Garbutt (Vice-President West); Maj Michael J. Vaillancourt (President, New Brunswick/PEI); LCol Michel Crowe (Honorary Legal Advisor); LCol Raymond Mikkola (President, Ontario); Mr. John James Corbett (President, Alberta); Cmdre Jean-Claude Michaud (Vice-President, National Field of Honour); Col Sam Dunbar (President, British Columbia); Mr. Gerald Leahy (President, Newfoundland-Labrador); and Col Marcel Belleau (President, Québec). Absent: Mr. Derek Sullivan, Veterans Affairs Canada.

*non-members

A Generous Donation from the Nova Scotia Government

8 June 2010 -- Nova Scotia Premier Darrel Dexter, on behalf of the Nova Scotia Government, recently made a very generous $25,000 donation to the Last Post Fund Nova Scotia Veteran's Columbarium. The donation is intended to assist the Nova Scotia Office with an eventual expansion of the Columbarium.

To learn more about the Nova Scotia Veterans Columbarium, follow this link:

http://www.lastpostfund.ca/EN/ns_columbarium.php

A Requiem to Honour and Remember Canada's Veterans

25 May 2010 -- On Saturday 5 June at 3 p.m., following the annual Last Post Fund commemorative ceremony at the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges and Mount-Royal cemeteries, a concert presentation will be held at Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount-Royal entitled A Requiem to Honour and Remember. This concert is designed to honour the memory of all Veterans who lost their lives in the great wars of the 20th century and who now rest in the two Mount-Royal cemeteries where the Last Post Fund acquired its first lots 100 years ago. It also celebrates the commitment of Canadian Forces Veterans who have served our nation with honour and dignity, in wartime and in peacetime. Mozart’s Requiem, which he began composing at the end of his life, will be performed by two choirs and a full orchestra conducted by Yvan Sabourin. Veterans of the Royal Canadian Legion will highlight the concert presentation with a parade of flag-bearers. Tickets will be on sale at the door the day of the concert.

This presentation would not have been possible without the participation of these partners:

Veterans Affairs Canada;

Royal Canadian Legion – Québec Command;

Canadian Forces Personnel and Family Support Services (CANEX);

Fondation Général Vanier de l'Association du 22e Régiment;

Air Force Association of Canada;

Army, Navy & Air Force Veterans Canada (ANAVETS);

Commissionaires Canada;

Canada Company: Many Ways to Serve;

Korea Veterans Association of Canada;

Naval Officers’ Association of Canada;

Canadian Military Police Association;

Royal Canadian Mounted Police;

Last Post Fund Québec Region;

Ste. Anne’s Hospital Foundation;

Rideau Memorial Gardens and Funeral Home;

Collins Clarke MacGillivray White Funeral Homes;

Magnus Poirier Funeral Homes;

Granite Lacroix Inc., Memorial Monuments Manufacturer;

Carrier Mausoleums Construction Inc.;

Raymond Bachand, Member for Outremont and Québec Finance Minister;

Jacques Chagnon, Member for Westmount—Saint-Louis and VP, Québec National Assembly;

Geoffrey Kelley, Member for Jacques-Cartier, Québec National Assembly;

Thomas J. Mulcair, Member of Parliament for Outremont, Government of Canada;

The Honourable Pierre Claude Nolin, Senator and Guest of Honour of this concert presentation.

ANNUAL COMMEMORATIVE CEREMONIES IN MONTREAL

Every year in June, the Québec Region of the Last Post Fund holds three commemorative ceremonies in Montreal. All are invited to attend the ceremony at the Last Post Fund National Field of Honour in Pointe-Claire.

Schedule

• Saturday 5 June at 11 a.m.
  Montreal’s Old Port

• Saturday 5 June at 1 p.m.
  Notre-Dame-des-Neiges and Mount-Royal cemeteries

• Sunday 6 June at 3 p.m.
  National Field of Honour in Pointe-Claire

Last Post Fund Long Medal Service Delivered by Québec Lieutenant Governor Pierre Duchesne

20 May 2010 -- The Honourable Pierre Duchesne, Québec’s 28th Lieutenant Governor and the Honorary Patron of the Last Post Fund (LPF) Québec Region, was invited to deliver the LPF Long Service Medal to employees and volunteer members of the LPF Québec Region.

Each of the recipients had completed a minimum of 12 years of exemplary service, “characterized by good conduct, industry and efficiency and that serves as a model for others”. All together, these 17 civil, religious and military recipients have collected 292 years of exemplary service symbolizing their engagement to the Last Post Fund and to the community of Canadian and Allied Veterans, with particular attention to the less fortunate at the time of death. One of the recipients, Lieutenant General Gilles A. Turcot, for one, has completed 40 years of service to the Last Post Fund. The LPF Long Service Medal was created to mark the organization’s centennial in 2009.

Appearing on the photo, left to right from the Lieutenant Governor’s aides-de-camp: Capt Reverend Bruce Glencross, CD; LCol Daniel O’Connor, CD; Mr. Shawn Davis; LCdr Rev. John Simms, CD, DD; Maj Andrea Laizner, SSStj, CD; Adjuc Régis Michaud, CD (behind Ms. Laizner); Adjt René Auger, CD; LCol Jean-Luc Fournier, CD; the Hon. Pierre Duchesne; Cpl Guy Dallaire, CD; Col René Pothier, CD; Adjuc Francis Lamarre; Rabbi Allan Langner; CaptN Peter Langlais, OMM, CD; BGen Richard Genin, CMM, CD; and Col Pierre Richard, CD. Absents from the photo: Capt Richard Séguin, CD, Jacques O'Keefe, CD and LGen Gilles Turcot, CM, CMM, CD.

Ironman Runs to Benefit the Last Post Fund

A New Logo for the Last Post Fund

1 April 2010 -- The Last Post Fund has just adopted its very first logo. A creation of Marinelli+Anctil Art&design. Follow this link to view the evolution of the Last Post Fund's visual identification since its inception in 1909:   LPF New Logo

In Memoriam: John Babcock

23 March 2010 -- Our country is in mourning. On 18 February, John "Jack" Babcock, Canada's last known Veteran of the First World War passed away. This event marks the end of an era in Canada’s military history. The Government of Canada will pay tribute to him, as well as to the men and women of the country who have served during that conflict, at a national memorial ceremony to be held in Ottawa on Friday 9 April 2010. For more details, please follow this link: http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=feature/crfww

LAST POST FUND CENTENNIAL

Official Recognition from Six Provinces

18 February 2010 -- To mark the centennial of the Last Post Fund in 2009, Members of the Legislative Assembly of six provinces have issued Statements recognizing the commitment and support of our organization for Canadian and Allied Veterans. They are: British Columbia, Manitoba, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Québec. A well-deserved official recognition!

On the Road in Newfoundland

11 February 2010 -- Two road panels in Carbonear, along the Newfoundland Veterans Memorial Highway (Route 75), each display a sign that reads “Last Post Fund Serving Veterans Since 1909”. This was initiated by the Newfoundland-Labrador Last Post Branch to mark the centennial of the organization. The two signs were generously donated by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, a nice gesture that will surely contribute to keep alive the memory of our Veterans.

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Five Long Service Medals for the Newfoundland Branch

5 February 2010 -- On January 28, the Honourable John C. Crosbie, Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland and Honorary Patron of the LPF Newfoundland—Labrador Branch, presented five Long Service Medals during a ceremony at Government House in St. John’s, assisted by Gerald Leahy, President of the Branch. The conferees are: Lieutenant (ret’d) Donald Newell (13 years of service), Lieutenant (ret’d) Ruby Dewling (19 years), Lieutenant-Colonel (ret’d) Harvey Bishop (32 years), Ms. Maxine King, Manager of the Branch (16 years) and Lieutenant-Commander (ret’d) Anthony Ayre (32 years).  The presentation was followed by a reception hosted by the Lieutenant Governor and Mrs. Crosbie, and was attended by some 50 family and friends of the recipients.

Left to right: Don Newell, Ruby Dewling, Mrs. Crosbie and the Hon. John Crosbie,

Harvey Bishop, Maxine King and Tony Ayre.

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Members of Police Forces at the National Field of Honour

1 February 2010 -- Until recently, Canadian or Allied Veterans, to be eligible for the Field of Honor Pointe-Claire, must have been serving during the Second World War or the Korean conflict, they must have participated in peacekeeping missions of the United Nations or have been awarded the Canadian Forces Decoration after 12 years of military service.   For many years, several members of police forces have served and valiantly continue to serve our country, alongside our military, in peacekeeping missions around the world. In order to express our gratitude for their involvement, the LPF Québec Branch has established new eligibility rules for these men and women who wish to be interred at the National Field of Honour. Therefore, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and other Canadian police forces who served in UN peacekeeping missions or in special operations areas have now access to the Field of Honour as their final resting place, as have done more than 15,000 Canadian and Allied Veterans.

 

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Three Last Post Fund Members in the Olympic Torch Relay

    

Left to right: Messrs. Roland Lortie and Dominique Jamet, and Ms. Evelyn Kelly

                 

11 January 2010 -- In December 2009, braving the snow and the cold, three members of the Last Post Fund had the outstanding honour to carry the 2010 Olympic Torch. Joining with 12,000 other Canadians, they were part of a 100-day, 45,000-kilometre journey to be concluded in Vancouver with the opening ceremony of the 21st Olympic Winter Games.

Early morning on 2 December, LCol (ret’d) Roland Lortie from the Québec Branch could be seen carrying the precious flame near Alma in Québec. In the evening of 10 December, the Executive Director of the Last Post Fund, LCol (ret’d) Dominique Jamet, had his turn as a torchbearer on beautiful Mount-Royal in Montreal. Finally, on 21 December, LCol (ret'd) Evelyn Kelly, member of the Ontario Branch and Vice-President West of the Last Post Fund (also Aide-de-camp to the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario), ran her own stretch of the Relay bearing the flame in Welland, Ontario. 

Said Kelly: “The faces of the people lining the route said it all; some were tearing up with pride, some wanted to touch the torch and some were simply joyous to be able to see the torch go by… I held it high for all to see as we were all part of this very surreal moment. I am deeply honoured and so proud to be among such a rare and august group of Canadians.”

 

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