Joseph Marquis Crescent

Joseph Marquis Crescent was dedicated in 2004.

The streets in Garrison Green were initially named after the places where Canadian troops had served on peacekeeping missions and were to be renamed to reflect Lincoln Park’s history as an airfield during the Second World War. The Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping's (CAVUNP) national president at the time, Colonel Don Ethell, objected. The Calgary chapter of CAVUNP proposed 16 Canadian peacekeepers names, of which 13 were chosen. Each street is named after a Canadian Peacekeeper, of varying ranks and service time frames. A summary of the Peacekeepers’ experiences is provided with a plaque placed on each street. Together they provide a comprehensive overview of Canadian peacekeeping missions and experiences from the 1950’s to 2000.

[street sign/panneau de rue]
JOSEPH MARQUIS CRES

[plaque]
STAFF-SERGEANT JOSEPH PAUL MARQUIS, CD

Staff Sergeant Joseph Marquis was the first Canadian Peacekeeper to die serving on an armed United
Nations mission. Marquis served with the 57th Canadian Signals Unit as per of the United Nations
Operation in the Congo (ONUC), a 19,000-strong force created in 1960 to bring the law and order to the newly
independent African nation, and to halt Belgian intervention in its former colony. At the same time military
forces arrived, UN civilian experts were rushed in to help ensure the continues operations of essential
public services. ONUC's civilian aid component was the UN's largest single programme of assistance up
to that time.

Marquis was killed on January 20, 1962. He was one of 245 military personnel killed during ONUC's four-year
mission. In September 2001, Marquis' family was presented with the Canadian Memorial Cross, symbolic of
those soldiers who died while on duty for Canada.

SERGENT-CHEF JOSEPH PAUL MARQUIS, CD

Premier Casque bleu canadien tué lors d'une mission armée de maintien de la paix des Nations Unies,
le Sergent-chef Joseph Marquis a servi auprès du 57e Escaddron de communications (Royal Canadian
Signal Corps) de l'Opération des Nations Unies au Congo (ONUC), une force de 19 000 troupes formée en
1960 pour rétablir l'ordre dans cette nation africaine nouvellement indépendante et pour mettre fin à
l'intervention belge dans son ancienne colonie. A l'arrivée des forces militaires, des experts civils de
l'ONU ont été dépêchés sur les lieux pour veiller au fonctionnement continu des services publics
essentiels. L'importante composante d'aide civile de l'ONUC représentait la première tentative de l'ONU
de concilier un programme d'aide à sa mission.

Joseph Marquis a trouvé la mort le 20 janvier 1962. Il fait partie des 245 militaires tués durant les quatre
armées de mission de l'ONUC. En septembre 2001, on a remis à la famille du Sergent-chef Marquis la Croix
du Souvenir du Canada, symbole des soldats canadiens qui sont donné leur vie au service de Canada.

Canada's Peacekeeping Heroes
Les héros candiens du maintien de la paix

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