Surrey’s largest and most active Sikh temple held its 2nd annual Remembrance Day prayer for Canada’s fallen soldiers this past weekend inside its prayer hall.
Dasmesh Darbar’s leadership committee, headed by President Gian Singh Sandhu, hosted senior officers from the HMCS Algonquin naval vessel and presented a ceremonial sword, a plaque and a $2,500 donation to the visiting military contingent.
The Canadian Forces contingent included an honour guard and bagpipers. They participated in a march through the temple grounds before entering the sanctum for the special ardas.
In his speech before the packed congregation, Sandhu recognised the sacrifices of enlisted military personnel on behalf of all Canadians.
“I on behalf of the Dashmesh Darbar Gurdwara and Sikhs everywhere send our heartfelt thanks to all the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces who serve to keep us safe,” said Sandhu.
“We in this congregation have vowed to uphold and help the Canadian military in whatever way we can.”
Lt(N) Arthur Halpenny of the HMCS Algonquin accepted the ceremonial sword.
“We are very honoured to participate in this Remembrance Day ceremony,” he said. “This is an excellent opportunity for members of our ship’s company to join hands with the Sikh community to commemorate the loss of our fallen sailors, soldiers and air personnel.”
For the second year running, the event was organised by Harbinder Singh Sewak, publisher of The South Asian Post. His efforts have also resulted in the formation of the Sikh Cadets whereby youth have an opportunity to learn new skills and enhance their education through free military cadet training classes.
Sikhs have a long cultural tradition of participation in the military. Over 65,000 Sikhs fought for the British Army in WWI and over 300,000 Sikhs fought against the Germans and Japanese in WWII.
To learn more about the Sikh Cadets, please enquire at [email protected].