All Canadian soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice will be remembered this Remembrance Day including the late Private David Robert James Byers of Espanola..
Jane Byers, his mother, is this year’s Silver Cross Mother in Espanola.
She will lay a wreath, not only in memory of her son, but for all soldiers who have died in the service of their country.
Byers was a private with the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, based in Shilo, Manitoba and was just 22 when he died in Afghanistan.
Pte Byers family was presented with the Sacrifice Medal posthumously for his service.
He rests at the Espanola Cemetery.
A Silver Cross Mother is chosen each year by the Royal Canadian Legion to lay a wreath during the Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on behalf of all mothers who have lost children in the service of their country.
The Sacrifice Medal was created in the context of increased casualties in overseas operations to fulfill the desire of Canadians and the Government to provide formal recognition, through the award of an official medal emanating from the Crown, to those who die as a result of military service or are wounded by hostile action. This honour replaced the Wound Stripe.