Julia LennipsNext weekend Canadians at Arms is hosting a free virtual concert for Veterans and Canadians across the country. The organizations aim is to raise funds for two charities that help Veterans.
Canadians can watch tenor John McDermott, and comedians Glen Foster, Derek Sequin and Rachelle Elie perform by merely visiting the society’s website.
Originally scheduled to take place back in April, COVID-19 derailed the organization’s An Evening for Veterans event.
“Our signature fund-raising event for 2020, An Evening for Veterans, was battered and beaten to a pulp and then rose like the Phoenix in a virtual form,” said Bruce Ricketts, chairman of the Canadian At Arms Historical Society.
April 2020 scheduled concert
The organization’s initial plan had two concerts scheduled to take place this past April. The aim was to raise funds for organizations that support veterans, primarily RESPECT Forum and Homes for Heroes.
The concert portion featured John McDermott, the Ottawa Military Wives Choir. The concert was to be followed by a comedy event featuring Derek Seguin and Glen Foster at the main stage at the Centrepointe Theatre in Ottawa. All was proceeding as planned.
“Enter COVID, we changed the date to October, but it was not economically viable given social distancing rules. We revamped the whole thing, and at 8 p.m. on September 6, 2020, we are presenting An Evening for Veterans with John McDermott, Glen Foster, Derek Seguin, and Rachelle Elie, online at www.canadiansatarms.ca,” said Ricketts.
Along with performing, Canadian comedian Elie is emceeing the event.
Recording Canadian military history
Ricketts’ passion for veterans and Canadian history is close to his heart. His father served during the Second World War.
“I am a 71-year-old proud military BRAT. I am proud of my parents and of my family, who has, through their service, contributed so much to Canada,” said Ricketts.
He added, “My parents, my family, and all who have served, including BRATS, deserve to be remembered and honoured. Canadians at Arms Historical Society was to be a rallying point for Canadians.”
Established in 2018
The non-profit corporation was established in 2018 with its frontispiece, its website, canadiansatarms.ca. Their focus is to preserve the history of the Canadian military from the War of 1812 to the current day.
Ricketts noted, “The identification, cataloguing, and preservation of this history is a relatively hard job. Material for the site is gathered from multiple sources, including online, magazines and books, and museums and archives.”
He added, “We do not rewrite the history; we gather it and post it. One crucial piece of the puzzle, to preserve the accuracy of material, is the use of multiple references for any story, if possible.”
Canadian At Arms Historical Society
The goal of the Society and the site is to help Canadians, and non-Canadians understand and appreciate the contributions made to the fabric of our country by the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). The society has been running for two years.
There is no membership needed to be a part of the society so that anyone can access the site for free. The organization appreciates all its volunteers.
With respect to the website development and operation, Ricketts noted not much has changed due to COVID-19, except that there are many more people accessing the site.
For Ricketts, the importance of creating the site came to his attention in 2017, when he began to research his father’s best friend, an Ontario Regiment Sergeant, killed in Italy in 1944.
“I found it very difficult to locate the material I needed for my research. I decided at that time that there should be a single resource to which Canadians could go to help find information and guidance,” said Bruce.
For more information about the event and visit Canadian At Arms Historical Society here.
