It’s been just over a year since Cpl. Nathan Cirillo was gunned down in an attack near Parliament Hill and the relative sense of peace felt in Canada was shattered.
In honour of the young corporal who died guarding Ottawa’s National War Memorial, Steve Merritt once again stood vigil for four days – nine hours a day – at Cochrane’s own cenotaph. Merritt, the sergeant-at-arms of Cochrane’s Royal Canadian Legion Men of Vision Branch #15, said he felt inspired to conduct the vigil again by the show of support he received from last year’s event.
“The community stepped up; they showed up in spades, Why not do it again? It’s just a simple act of remembrance and simply put, this man, Corporal Nathan Cirillo, will never be forgotten.”
Merritt recalled his reaction when he first learned of the brazen attack in which a lone gunman fatally shot Cirillo.
“It was just sheer fright. I recognized it immediately to be a terrorist act. To view a situation like that where a ceremonial sentry guard gets assassinated from behind it’s just … overwhelming.”
Merritt said he was inspired after seeing a Facebook posting about cenotaph vigils being held across Canada in honour of Cirillo.
The vigil is also meant to honour the memory of warrant officer Patrice Vincent who was rammed and killed by a vehicle in a suspected “lone wolf” terrorist attack in Quebec two days before Cirillo’s death in Ottawa.
Merritt related that it’s also an opportunity to raise the profile of veterans struggling with hardship and the declining numbers of veterans due to old age.
“It’s revering fallen comrades but, as well, it’s raising awareness for veterans that are slipping through the cracks or are going through what they call attrition.”
Veteran Brian Walford also participated in the vigil, for two of the four days, and described how the tragedy has hit home the notion that service members often have to make the ultimate sacrifice.
“The two deaths last year really compounded the feeling that there are people out there, laying their life on the line for us. I’ve had many people come to me and say ‘thank you, I didn’t have to serve because you were doing it.’ ”
Merritt had this message for the general public: “The best thing citizens can do is teach their children the value of remembering the sacrifices of the men and women of the past. As long as we can educate our children and keep it within them, hopefully this will keep passing on through generations.”
