Amherst looks to create a place for Afghanistan veterans

A year-and-a-half-ago, Amherst Legion Sergeant in Arms Justin McKay brought forward a project that he says is long overdue: a memorial space for Afghanistan veterans.

“We have roughly over 100 Afghanistan veterans in Cumberland County and they don’t have a cenotaph or any spot to go to remember their fallen comrades,” he said.

However, by September, the goal is to change that by creating a brand new monument outside of town hall.

The memorial will be a black granite stone complete with a concrete walkway and benches to turn it into an inviting space for everyone.

“All 158 of the Canadians that died in Afghanistan will have their names on there, and on the rear of the stone there will be the Act of Remembrance and In Flanders Field, and in the middle of the stone is a picture of the FOB Masum Ghar,” said McKay.

It’s a personal project for everyone involved, including McKay, who says he knows at least 15 men whose names will be etched on the stone.

“I hope they never forget what these guys did… at the end of the day… and the ones that didn’t come back the same,” he said.

“We just have to never forget what people gave up for our freedom.”

On Easter weekend in 2007, six Canadians lost their lives fighting for freedom in Afghanistan. It’s a memory that is still very raw for veteran Jeremy Dobson who was deployed in Afghanistan from January to August of that year.

“They were brothers,” he said, remembering his comrades.

He says the new space in Amherst will make it easier to reflect and remember.

“It’s not just a name on a stone,” he said. “Every person on that head went over there and sacrificed their life for the people of Afghanistan and the people here at home. So it’s very memorializing for them.”

Dobson has been assisting McKay during the planning process by helping with some more of the personal decisions. He says he weighed in on the importance of the fallen names and the picture of the mural that was made at Masum Ghar in Afghanistan.

On April 17, town council is holding a committee of the whole meeting where the project will be discussed in more detail, including a draft overview.

“It’s very important for everyone to remember the people that have sacrificed for our freedoms,” said Amherst Town Councillor Lisa Emery.

“The town likes to work collaboratively with our local organizations, and of course the legion is very important to our community, representing local veterans, so when they approached us, we decided that working with them to bring this project forward was going to be very important.”

On top of giving veterans a place to remember, Dobson says the hope is that this project will also help bring his generation of veterans back into the realm of things.

“The fact that the legion is actually involved in it is bringing a good light to it as well because a lot of the Afghan veterans are feeling left out with the legions because it’s kind of the hush-hush thing,” he said. “A lot of people didn’t consider it a war, but there’s definitely a lot of war-like activities that happened in Afghanistan. It’s not different than previous conflicts that went on.”

The total project is expected to cost over $30,000.

The legion is holding a benefit dance on June 3 and donations are welcomed.