Erma Stephenson students honour veterans with No Stone Left Alone initiative
Erma Stephenson Elementary students place poppies on the graves of fallen soldiers at Victory Memorial Park as part of their classwork for Remembrance Day with the No Stone Left Alone initiative.
Two classes from Surrey’s Erma Stephenson Elementary paid tribute to Canada’s veterans by participating in No Stone Left Alone, an initiative that educates students about war history through visits to the tombstones of fallen soldiers.
Grade 7 teachers Shelagh Lim and Tamara Fransen took their classes to Victory Memorial Park in South Surrey on Nov. 2 to see the headstones of veterans and hold a small ceremony in their honour. While No Stone Left Alone officially launched in 2011, this is the school’s first time being involved.
“Remembrance Day is a really important day for me,” said Lim. “Most of the time, we do Remembrance Day events in the school, so it just makes it that much more real when it’s in a place that soldiers are interred.”
In teaching her students about the importance of Remembrance Day, Lim shared a personal part of her life that is of great significance to her and the school at this time of year.
“One of my former students, Terry Street, was killed in Afghanistan in 2008, so he’s front of mind every year,” she said. “I reintroduced him to my students and they made a connection because one of the lines in the ceremony speech that our kids give says, ‘He played in our gym, he walked in our halls.’”
Erma Stephenson Elementary teacher Shelagh Lim sets a poppy on the memorial for her former student, Pte. Terry John Street.
Pte. Terry John Street, 24, was a member of the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. Street was killed on April 4, 2008, when his armoured vehicle struck an improvised explosive device while returning to base in the Panjwaii district southwest of Kandahar City.
“He is buried at Victory Memorial Park,” said Lim. “Instead of this just being a picture that the kids have seen and a speech they’ve heard, they can physically be at the site, which is going to make a huge impact.”
For the ceremony, students read a list of names of soldiers who have passed away, laid some small handmade wreaths and brought rocks they painted with poppies to display next to headstones. The rocks will be taken back to the school and used in the Remembrance Day assembly and then displayed in the school or on the school grounds to serve as a reminder of the contributions of our veterans.
Lim said she hopes the initiative helps students truly understand the sacrifice veterans have made for our country’s freedom.
“I want our kids to realize that even though they leave us, someone’s still thinking of them,” she said. “The whole reason is to make sure that no one forgets the veterans.”
For more information, visit nostoneleftalone.ca
