Held at the only Military Grave in Canada of a Sikh Soldier from the World Wars
KITCHENER, Canada—Organized by the SikhMuseum.com, in collaboration with the Golden Triangle Sikh Association and the local Sikh community, the annual Sikh Remembrance Day Ceremony was held on Sunday, November 8 at the grave site of Pvt. Buckam Singh in Kitchener’s Mount Hope Cemetery.
“This yearly ceremony is an opportunity for Canadians to honour the service of our men and women of the Canadian Forces as well as remember all those who have served and sacrificed for our country in past wars,” said Sandeep Singh Brar, the curator of the SikhMuseum.com. “This year’s ceremony had over 200 people attending, and has been our largest gathering of Sikh soldiers in North America, including a 102-year old veteran.”
Pvt. Buckam Singh’s grave site and Victory medal was discovered by Sandeep Singh Brar. Pvt. Singh was the first Sikh to enlist with an Ontario battalion in 1915, and was twice wounded since he went to the front. He was engaged as a farm hand for W. H. Moore, of Rosebank Ont., when the call came for active service. His name appears among the wounded in today’s list. Pvt. Singh came to Canada from Punjab in 1907.
This year’s ceremony was especially significant with the recent appointment of Lieutenant-Colonel Harjit Singh Sajjan as Canada’s new Minister of National Defence – a practicing Sikh who served in the Canadian Armed Forces and is a combat veteran.
