Two local high school students have won a prestigious international award from the Vimy Foundation, a Canadian charity, to travel to historical sites in Europe: the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize. From hundreds of applicants across Canada, the UK and France, two grade 11 student from Fredericton, Rose He and Jack Roy, were selected to participate in this flagship scholarship program.
The Beaverbrook Vimy Prize consists of a fully funded, two-week educational program in France, and Belgium to study the intertwined history of our countries during the First and Second World Wars. Scheduled for August 7-20, 2019, these 16 outstanding students (from Canada, the UK, and France) will attend intimate history lectures, pay their respects at the stunning Canadian National Vimy Memorial, learn from experts at Ypres, Passchendaele, and Beaumont Hamel, walk along Juno Beach and other key sites in Normandy, and participate in unique commemoration ceremonies at the Menin Gate (First World War) and at Dieppe (Second World War).
In addition, the participants in the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize program for 2019 have a unique opportunity to visit many of the sites of the First World War a century after the signing of the 1919 Versailles peace treaty. The Canadian Corps’ accomplishments from August 8 to November 11, 1918 were truly impressive, though incredibly costly—when the Allies planned the offensives that would ultimately win the war, Canada’s soldiers were given the responsibility of being at the forefront of the attacks. Beaverbrook Vimy Prize students will be visiting many of the key locations from the Last 100 Days campaign, including Amiens, Cambrai, and Mons.
We no longer have any veterans of the First World War still with us: we have lost that direct connection with their stories – of the tragedy of war, of the reasons why they enlisted to fight, of the impact of the war on them, their families, and their countries. There are no more living links to the First World War, so this is why the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize program exists, to keep their legacy alive by engaging today’s youth in discovering more about our shared past.
Calm and collected even under stress, Rose He is a valiant member of Fredericton High School’s Red Cross Response Team. Her time volunteering with veterans at her local nursing home has inspired her to organize Remembrance Day events in conjunction with her student council. Rose is an ambassador for bilingualism, and also volunteers with her local hospital, Boys and Girls Club, and with the Canadian Blood Services. If you feel like you’re drowning in commitments, this lifeguard will pull you out of the water, teach you violin, and still make it to her advancement classes at the University of New Brunswick.
Proud Maritimer Jack Roy writes eloquently about war ships setting sail during the First World War as a part of the art reflection component of his application: “this ocean spirit still runs deep within all Maritimers’ bones, and a true respect for the sea unites us all.” Jack was the master of ceremonies at Leo Hayes High School’s last Remembrance Day commemoration. He is an executive member of his student government and takes part in the activities of the Model United Nations Club. Jack also volunteers his time at the Canadian Cancer Society. His teachers describe him as humble and assisting.
We are happy to arrange for several interviews with key participants, including Caitlin Bailey Vimy Foundation Executive Director, as well as with the students, Rose He and Jack Roy. The Vimy Foundation is a charitable organization whose mission is to preserve and promote Canada’s First World War legacy, best symbolized with the victory at Vimy Ridge in April 1917. This trip is supported by the Beaverbrook Canadian Foundation. For more information about the Vimy Foundation and the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize, please visit our website at www.vimyfoundation.ca.
