Véronic Beaudry and Samuel Duguay

Véronic is a Franco-Manitoban from Saint-Boniface, Manitoba. Some of her ancestors came from Normandy, and her great-grandfather, Justin Beaudry, participated in the Second World War in the Canadian Postal Corps. When she heard about a program inviting Canadian students to become guides at the Juno Beach Centre, she quickly jumped at the opportunity. She is currently completing her last year of teacher’s education, taking part in an internship as a secondary school teacher of grade 12 students.

Samuel is an Acadian who grew up in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and finished his Business management studies in 2017. He was one of the first to join the Veterans Affairs Canada Youth Network, in 2018, as he wanted to be more active in various Veterans’ causes.

“It’s hard to imagine this magnificent place ravaged by bombs and grenades.”

Véronic set foot in France for the very first time on February 1, 2019, to begin her experience as a guide at the Juno Beach Centre. “Coming here and discovering where my ancestors lived and what my great grandfather and his compatriots had to face in the Second World War is very special,” explained the young woman. “It’s hard to imagine this magnificent place ravaged by bombs and grenades.”

Samuel was chosen to accompany the Veterans Affairs Canada delegation to France because of his constant involvement in the Youth Network and Veterans’ causes. “It really was a very unique and extraordinary experience. I had the opportunity to spend the whole week with the Veterans.”

Véronic is very moved when she thinks about the young men her age who gave their all and fought for peace. She is grateful for the sacrifices they made and admires their courage, perseverance and hope. Samuel echoes that sentiment: “It’s easy to say yes, I would go to war and then I would put myself in that position, but to do so is a different story. Those people were very courageous.”

“It’s easy to say yes, I would go to war and then I would put myself in that position, but to do so is a different story. Those people were very courageous.”

Véronic also does not hesitate to say that if something similar happened again, a lot of young people would do anything to get back to normal. Her experience as a guide at Juno Beach Centre changed her. “It made me much more thankful for everything I have because I know that sometimes they could go days without eating, days without washing.”

Samuel was able to admire the humility but also recognize the courage of the Second World War Veterans during the week that he spent with them. His reflections led him to believe that we must not forget the service of all our military personnel, regardless of their era, nor those Canadians who suffer today from post-traumatic stress disorder. “It’s also important to talk, then we talk about it more and more, the impact,” he said.

Véronic Beaudry and Samuel Duguay are featured as Faces of Freedom to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Listen to them talk about their experiences and the importance of commemoration in a Faces of Freedom podcast episode (in French only).

For further information on the Juno Beach Centre, please visit the Juno Beach Centre website.

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