No Stone Left Alone: Junior high students place poppies at veterans' headstones

Students from Gorsebrook Junior High School marched through the south end of Halifax on Thursday morning.

Along with active members of the Canadian military, they honoured those who served and are buried at Fort Massey Cemetery.

Members of the Canadian military honoured those who served and are buried at Fort Massey Cemetery in Halifax on Nov. 10, 2022. (Paul Hollingsworth/CTV)

“On April 9, 1917, 15,000 Canadian troops were tasked with taking back Vimy Ridge in northern France," says Major Christine Cope.

According to teacher Jean Claude Boudreau, Thursday’s march was more than just an educational opportunity.

"Students can understand and remember the sacrifices of our veterans," said Boudreau. "I am humbled and grateful to be a part of the No Stone Left Alone experience.”

No Stone Left Alone is a national program that sees junior high students place poppies at the headstones of veterans who served overseas.

A poppy is placed by the grave of a veteran in Halifax's Fort Massey Cemetery. (Paul Hollingsworth/CTV)

“Kids taking part in a physical exercise to place a poppy on a headstone and read the physical name of a soldier on the head stone," says teacher Basil Rose. "I think that would have a profound impact.”

Fourteen-year-old Ian Krill says he was moved by the experience.

“Just an honour to be a part of the program," he says. "As the younger generation, we are the ones who are going to carry on the tradition.”

Krill added that as he and his fellow students placed poppies, he thought about the soldiers, sailors and airmen who left to fight for Canada, but never came back.

“They did it not just for themselves, but for everybody.”

A veteran's grave is pictured in Halifax's Fort Massey Cemetery. (Paul Hollingsworth/CTV)