Remember the living From page 14 chant ship with nothing to fight back with. And when the luck strikes bad in the form of torpedo, bomb, or raid. you leam to evacuate your boat and escape to the water as fast as your fear of death can move you. And you learn to battle fellow seamen for the last space . in a floating raft, and to watch your ship sink to its demise in 4 burning. blazing fury. You leam to spend drawn-out never-ending minutes, hours, days, waiting for a rescue . boat or slow death to take you. You learn how to survive. And then, congratulations. You are one of the lucky ones. A British survivor ship has rescued your raft and you are alive. Within a short perind of time. the war is finished. the Allies have won, and you are a hero. You retum to your native country. You have gone through a lot in serving your land. You have treated it as well as you know it will treat you now. For you have heard of the post-war benefits, veterans’ job preference. rehabil- itation grants. free university education and land and cash grants to start businesses. But for some reason, us a Canadian Merchant Marine. you are exempt from all those bencfits. You do not even gel recognition of service or death. and are denied re- employment at sea. Isn't it odd that every Allied nation has awarded Canadian merchant seamen medals for acts of bravery and heroism in enemy action, except for one in Canada? "Isnt it funny that in the other Allied countries, the mer- chant navy is counted as the fourth branch of the armed services, equal in all benefits, compensation. and recogrni- tion, but in Canada, it is it not? The Canadian merchant navy seamen fought alongside all other branches of the armed forces against a common, distant enemy during the Second World War. For the past 50 years, they have had to fight a new enemy, and this time _ have had to do it on their own. This new enemy, Veterans Affairs Canada, has ignored . fepeated attempts by the veterans to receive the same treatment as the navy, the army, or the air force. For some reason the merchant navy has been excluded from the offi- cial War Veterans Allowance Act, which authorizes all post-war advantages. The situation has prevented Nicholas Halavrezos. an’ 84-vear-old: veteran who now lives in Richmond, from receiving adequate veteran's medical coverage for lung cancer. Doctors think that his tumor was caused by toxic fumes inhaled and the oil swallowed when he was torpe- doed at sea. He and his wife have been petitioning the Canadian government since 1977. It has yielded nothing. The Merchant Navy Veteran and Civilian War-related Benefits Act (Bill C-84) was passed in 1992 and was sup- posed to give the veterans what they deserved. However, the bill only recognized the merchant marines as civilian veterans. They are still exempt from equality to the other armed services in 40 ways, including rehabilitation grants, unemployment benefits and medical cure. Veterans Affairs Canada has repeatedly stated that Bill C-84 gives equal treatment to merchant marines, but the marines are not accepting the benefits to avoid swallowing their pill of bitterness, du to the admitted unfair treatment by the goverment before the bill was passed. Says Secretary of State spokesman Don Wilson, “...we may have gotten to the point where some people are su bitter. they find themselves not being able to take yes for an answer.” The Merchant Navy Coalition doesn’t buy that. Whatever the truth may be, let's hope that conflicts are resolved and the veterans receive their due before it is too late. They are a dying breed. The average age for the sur- viving seamen is 74. What used to be a force of 12,000 at wartime, has diminished to a paltry 3.000 remuining in Canada. Laments one veteran, “By the time we receive our ben- efits. we'll all be dead.” Parents and teachers use Remembrance Day to educate children about those who sacrificed their lives for our free- dom during wartiine. But let’s not forget merchant’ navy seamen and other living war veterans, who still deserve our recognition of their contribution to Canada’s war effons. Cenotaph funding needed From page 12 the'cenotaph now also acts as a tribute to the 108 Canadians killed in various - peacekeeping roles around the world. - - '’ About 300 casualties are believed ., to be from North Vancouver. - In addition to the cenotaph itself, the enhancement project also includes an upgrading of the surrounding area of Victoria Park. The revitalized park ., will include: a commemorative lawn, extended walkways, lighting, a drink- — ing ‘fountain, floral plantings and . additional benches. ° “We'd like to make it a people place,” said Perrault. Even though most of the surround- ing work has yet to be completed, the park will host a Remembrance Day ceremony featuring the. cenotaph flame which will be lii for the occa~ sion. The bulk of the project's $516,000 price tag will be covered by the city and district. However, $150,000 is expected to be raised in the communi- North Vancouver City engineer Chuck Gale is spearheading the fundraising effort on the city’s behalf. He is sure the $150,000 target will be met. Approximately $15,000 has been raised within the community. On Oct. 30 Gale and various indi- viduals invulved in the project, includ- ing Perrault and North Vancouver City Mayor Jack Loucks. met with _ business leaders in the community. “We had san excellent response,” said Gale of the meeting. “Freedom t to choose. Your choice of two brand new cellular phones - “the Nokia 10! pocket phone or the Motorola flip phone. Each only $99 while supplies last. Freedom tonight. 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Nov. usa eoL ° OFF All Clothing (at ep se) Non Fiction == Moratti Calvin Klein Guess Jeffrey Rogers Additional 107 off all sale clothing {Lonsdale Quay | 2nd Floor 986-4893 “Lest We Forget” ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION and _ ANAF YETERANS _OFCANADA © > Remembrance Day Service insat, Nov. 11, 1995 at 11 am WEST VANCOUVER | MEMORIAL CENOTAPH | All veterans wishing to march, assemble at 18th & Marine 10:30 am (opposite Hollyburn Funeral Home) NORTH VANCOUVER CENOTAPH ‘Victoria Park - Keith Rd. and Lonsdale Fallin 10:15 a.m... ’ Under the auspices of the North, Van Veterans Council