Released on October 28, 2014
The Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport today premiered Stories of Courage: Saskatchewan Second World War Veterans Remember, a series of eight videos presenting the oral histories of 17 Saskatchewan residents who served during the Second World War.
The project started when community advocates asked the Government of Saskatchewan to help preserve our province’s military heritage before it was lost. Together, three priorities were established: organizing a new provincial military heritage committee, developing an oral history project using video and integrating information about military heritage into the Saskatchewan curriculum.
“These oral histories will help future generations gain a sense of what life was like in Saskatchewan during the war, the values that led our country to join in the fight, and why the veterans who shared their stories so readily volunteered to serve,” Parks, Culture and Sport Minister Mark Docherty said. “You can draw a direct line from that generation’s valour to the spirit of the Canadian military today as we honour the lives of the two soldiers killed last week defending our freedoms.”
“There is value in preserving military heritage for present and future generations,” Saskatchewan Military Heritage Committee Chair and Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Larry Wong said. “Our history as a nation includes those difficult times when we were forced to take up arms and it’s an incomplete picture of our province if we don’t learn about and value these parts of our heritage.”
“City Saskatchewan is proud to broadcast this important series,” City Saskatchewan General Manager Joanne McDonald said. “As the province’s educational broadcaster, we are pleased to do our part to help explore a fuller understanding of this significant period of our history to our viewers.”
The videos, along with a new teaching guide containing detailed lesson plans for each video, will be placed in the provincial social studies curriculum for teachers to use in the classroom. They can be viewed online at www.saskatchewan.ca/storiesofcourage/.
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For more information, contact:
Sean St. George
Parks, Culture and Sport
Regina
Phone: 306-787-9087
Email: sean.st.george@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-526-8635