Everyone here at Explorica would like to take a moment to wish all our upcoming Vimy Ridge travellers well. Our exclusive Return to Vimy 2012: 95th Anniversary Tours give Canadians the opportunity to experience the life of a soldier during this important event in our nation’s history. We thank you for your dedication to history, and for your commemoration of those who fought to forge our nation.
As a tribute to the impact of a visit to Vimy Ridge, we post the following note in full from Mark Shannon, Calgary school teacher and Explorica Group Leader:
As a child, I was always drawn to stories about war history. By the time I was able to enrol in post-secondary school, this drive was such as to have me transfer to history full time. By 1993 I had completed two degrees in military history, specializing in the First and Second World Wars. At this time, my father showed me the diary of his uncle, Percival Roy Shannon, who fought and died in the First World War. His medals and his story were very compelling and it left me with an intense desire to visit the battlefields where he fought.
The story I was told, and one after conducting research turned out to be completely accurate, was that my great uncle Percival had dropped out of medical school in 1915 to enlist as a stretcher bearer. After serving in France, he was sent back to Montreal to complete his medical degree before re-enlisting as an officer in 1918. He served on the Arras front until killed while providing medical attention to a wounded Canadian on November 3, 1918. My father used to talk about him admiringly and would show us his medals which were proudly displayed in his home. After his passing in 2006, I was able to obtain the medals for myself, and they are proudly on display at my home.
In the summer of 2011, as part of an orientation tour for a school trip planned for April 2012, I travelled with Explorica to Vimy Ridge. It was an amazingly moving experience. My first glimpse of the massive monument left me in awe. I had seen pictures of course, but never really appreciated the size and power of the monument itself. What was even more surprising, was how completely unprepared I was for the emotional component of my discovery. Walking up the pathway to the Vimy memorial already left me overwhelmed but I was totally unprepared for the discovery I would soon make.
Moving just to the right of the steps up the monument, I began to examine the names on the wall. I knew from my research that there were thousands of Canadian names inscribed on the monument sides, but I did not know that the great uncle I had been told about was actually there. As luck would have it, the first panel I examined was the letter “S” and I curiously wondered if there were any Shannons on the wall. To my total amazement, my uncle’s name appeared after only a couple of cursory seconds of examination. I do not remember completely, but I dropped to my knees and stared at the name for a few minutes. I was completely oblivious to everything around me as the astonishment of my discovery wafted over me. As my wife took pictures of me before the memorial, I was filled with an incredible pride in the accomplishment of someone who had died decades before I even knew he was a part of my family heritage. For me Vimy will always hold a special personal significance and I look forward to returning to the same location ninety-five years to the day fellow Canadians took it during the First World War.
I am especially excited about the opportunity to share this experience with my students.