Jun 09

Remembering WWII with Calgary ALPHA and Fluevog Shoes

May exhibition

For those who have veterans in their family, this year marks a very special milestone; for the majority of those who don’t know, scratching your head may not help you that much. What is it, you ask? This year actually marks the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII.

Being as humble as we Canadian tend to be, we don’t boast about Canadian soldiers’ sacrifice in World War 2. When we do learn about it in school, we learn much more about the European front, where our involvement seems to be an obligation due to our link to the British empire. However, we do not know much about those who were sent to Asia to fight for the people of a foreign land. That includes Hong Kong, Malaya, (now Malaysia), Singapore, Java (now Indonesia), Burma (now Myanmar) and India. According to the Veterans Affairs website, “more than one million Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in the military — more than 45,000 gave their lives and another 55,000 were wounded”. Among them, “more than 9,000 Canadians spent time in enemy POW camps and… The Canadian POWs from the Defence of Hong Kong suffered a particularly heavy toll, as more than 260 did not survive the harsh conditions of the Japanese prison camps.” Source: http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/second-world-war

To commemorate this historic milestone and to bring awareness to this part of WWII, the Calgary Association of Learning and Preserving the History of WWII in Asia (Calgary ALPHA) is hosting a series of activities under the title: “Beyond Pearl Harbour: Canadian soldiers in the Orient and the Missing Truth of WWII in Asia” which includes a photo exhibition of WWII events in Asia, a documentary screening, speakers’ forum, and books & DVD sales. All events are free to the public.

Thanks to the community engagement initiative of Fluevog Shoes, Calgary ALPHA is able to have WWII documentary showing at Fluevog June 12 & 13th without them it would not be possible; Fluevog Shoes set a stellar example of how business can give back! If you are looking for something educational to do during lunch this Friday, or with your family, especially with your teenage (and up) children this weekend, come check out this event on June 12-13 (this Friday and Saturday) from 10:30am to 5pm on both days. Fluevog Shoes is located at Stephen Avenue Pedestrian Mall at 1st Street SW.

Since it is important to encourage our next generation to reflect and change the world we live in, there is an Essay Competition for high school and post-secondary students. The essay topic is “Learning from history – Reflecting upon the atrocity of WWII”. Details can be found at their Facebook page - Calgary ALPHA. There will be a cash scholarship for the winners so don’t miss out on this chance to learn and be rewarded! For further questions, contact [email protected]