Cenotaph Centennial events may change
May 7, 2024, 9:07 am
Ryan Kiedrowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
With a month left before the big event, the June 8 Cenotaph Centennial ceremonies may look a little different than initially planned. According to Cenotaph Centennial Committee Chair Brian Beckett, ticket sales for the supper have not been performing as the committee would like to see.
“We’ve been selling a few supper tickets, it’s not going like we had hoped,” he said, estimating 15 tickets being sold so far. “But we’ve got another another week, and then we’ll have to make our decision.”
Tickets for the supper are still on presale for $85 until May 15, after which the price goes up to an even $100. However, if ticket sales do not increase, the committee may decide to cancel the supper portion of the day’s festivities.
The committee does have a few other items on offer to help cover the costs of the special event, such as 3D printed replicas of the Moosomin Cenotaph for $100 each. The target with the replicas is to raise $2,500 with order forms available at the World-Spectator office or through emailing Beckett at b.s.beckett@sasktel.net. T-shirts commemorating the event are also available at the Legion and Kari’s Kloset.
All the action on June 8 begins at 10:30 a.m. with a march from the Armoury to the Cenotaph, with the ceremony commencing at 11 a.m. The procession will feature the RCMP, a pipe band, representatives from Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, and local Air Cadets providing the colour party.
Beckett says the ceremony will be similar to what occurs on Remembrance Day, with a few more speeches.
“Our plaque is done, so the plaque is going to be mounted eventually on the back of the cenotaph,” Beckett said. “For that day, what we’re going to do, though, is put it on an easel in front of the Cenotaph and then do the rededication and everything as we unveil it.”
Invitations to dignitaries have gone out months prior, but Beckett was a little disheartened with some of the responses.
“We started with the King and worked our way down,” he explained. “I’m finding it a little disappointing, we didn’t get much of a response from a lot of the dignitaries.”
That said, a large number of provincial and local dignitaries have locked the date in their schedules, including the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, Russel Mirasty; Moosomin Mayor Larry Tomlinson; and representatives from neighbouring RMs, and First Nations.
The official 100th birthday of the Cenotaph isn’t until late summer, however the early June date was favoured for the ability to draw more people.
