Flags of Remembrance have been taken down from Windsor's waterfront and given to friends and family.
The closing ceremony for the memorial packed the Royal Canadian Legion in Riverside Saturday. For the Johns family it was about honouring their grandfather, Cpl. Elmer Johns, who returned from WWI to raise two-boys who would serve in Belgium, France, and Germany during WWII.
(Photo courtesy of Nancy Johns-Root)
Last year brothers Stu and Tom Johns were honoured for their sacrifice. Stu was in attendance, but his daughter Nancy Johns-Root accepted Elmer's flag and plaque on behalf of the family.
She tells AM800 News the ceremony adds some perspective on how serious life was at a young age during war-time.
"What were you doing when you were 18? Going to a dance or a football game, thinking about something else. They were signing up to serve," she says.
Johns-Root spent 20 years with her grandfather, but for the younger generation, it's a way to reach into the past.
"I knew him well, so it's important for me and my family to see all this support for him, especially the grandchildren, they get pretty proud," she says.
Flags of Remembrance memorials fly 128 Canadian flags for 128,000 service members killed or missing in action every year at the end of September and through Remembrance Day in cities across the country.
Closing ceremony underway for the Flags of Remembrance. 128 flags were flown along the river all month and are now being returned to friends and family. https://t.co/PmcKkLp1mM #cklw pic.twitter.com/PzaLYS5BMK
— Gord Bacon (@baconAM800) November 24, 2018