Greater Hammonds Plains & Lucasville Cenotaph
Municipality/Province: Hammonds Plains, NS
Memorial number: 12005-013
Type: Monument
Address: Corner of Hammonds Plains Road and Crestfield Drive
Location: Uplands Park
GPS coordinates: Lat: 44.725558 Long: -63.739104
The cenotaph is 5.5 meter tall and was installed in 2006 on Hammonds Plains Road.
In 2010 the Greater Hammonds Plains and Lucasville community held its first local Remembrance Day Ceremony on the Phil Eishenauer baseball field; 100 people attended. In 2011 200 people showed up to this local service, still standing around a makeshift memorial. In 2012 400 people attended and in 2013 1,000. In 2014 the community moved this service to the Uplands Park baseball field with 2,000 people attending. The Greater Hammonds Plains and Lucasville Memorial Committee was formed to address the need for a permanent cenotaph. Local residents, Pam Lovelace, LCdr Todd Brayman, Maj Jason Samson, Rev Randy Townsend, and Andy and Anita Pearce took the lead. The crowd grew to 3,000 people in 2015, all anticipating what would come of this community initiative. On 2 July 2016 the Greater Hammonds Plains and Lucasville Cenotaph was dedicated with over 4,000 people in attendance and a three Sea King helicopter flypast.
There are many unique features to this memorial including soil having been repatriated from Vimy, Juno, RAF Stn Perranporth, Kapyong, Camp Julian, and water from the Atlantic. All represent points of great Canadian sacrifice. At the heart of the cenotaph is a medicine pouch, place by the Acadia First Nations.
Notable language diversity was a focus as well with "Lest we Forget" being displayed in Mi'kmaq, French, and English.
Inscription found on memorial
The face of the cenotaph highlights the dedication date, that we must always remember the sacrifice of our veterans, and the words "We Stand on Guard for Thee". Side two has the words from the poem "Flanders Fields." Side three has select words from the poem "For the Fallen." Side four's inscription honours the sacrifice of venteran's families. Around the top, Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Merchant Navy, Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and Allied Forces is inscribed.
There are five memorial boulders in the park. Boulder one provides a description of the sacred soil and water placed where Vigil Sentrys stand, boulder two and three are the French and English text of the citations from Nova Scotia Victoria Cross recipients action, while boulders four and five honour the Merchant Navy and Canadian peacekeeping.
Surrounding the cenotaph pad there are over 100 personal memorial messages inscribed on granite plaques.
Street view
Note
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