BARRHEAD - It has been going on in some form for the last 34 years.
Every year, in early October, Barrhead Royal Canadian Legion volunteers place Canadian flags on the graves of local veterans who served with the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), the Army, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the merchant navy and the RCMP.
On Oct. 14, Herman Barkemeyer, his wife Inga, former Town of Barrhead councillor Shelley Oswald and Bob Beatty planted about 170 Canadian flags at the graves of veterans and their spouses before running out of flags.
Barkemeyer is a 10-year CAF veteran with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI), including a rotation during the Korean War.
Once they get more, Barkemeyer and his crew of volunteers will return to complete the job of more than 200 and put a memorial wreath at the front gate.
He wasn't exactly sure of how many as he did not have his master sheet with him, but in past years, it has been upwards of 220.
That does not include the cemeteries adjacent to the Field of Honour or all the cemeteries in the County of Barrhead, which, when the time comes, he and his wife, and his younger twin brother John, a more than 39-year veteran with the RCAF, will be buried.
When the veterans and their spouses from the surrounding county cemeteries are added, the number of flags swells to over 300.
And even though the Legion attempts to ensure that every veteran in an area cemetery has a flag, someone occasionally calls him to say they've missed someone.
"We do our best," he said, adding that the Legion has created a definitive map of area cemeteries and grave sites over the years.
However, as there is no definitive list from the government or any other organization, it is up to the family and loved ones to let the Legion know where their relatives who served have been laid to rest. They also look for clues at the grave sites and tombstones for any clue as to whether a person has served.
It also helps that Barkemeyer has served as the Royal Canadian Legion's service officer who helps veterans and their relatives access services from Canada's Veterans Affairs.
"And if there is any doubt, we plant a flag," he said.
At one time, Barkemeyer said Legion volunteers that before laying flags, the Legion honoured deceased veterans' graves in the Field of Honour by using the memorial wreaths placed at the cenotaph.
Unfortunately, there was a problem using the wreaths. First, they needed more and did not hold up well over the winter.
Eventually, after doing some research, Barkemeyer said, they decided to go with Canadian flags, which the Legion purchases at the local dollar store.
"We are fortunate to have a place like the Field of Honour. Not every community does," he said. "The [Anglican Church] donated the property [in 1925] for the sole purpose of honouring Barrhead's veterans. But it is because of the work that the Second World War veterans did when they returned home who donated supplies, planted the trees, and put in a lot of sweat equity that makes it what it is."
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
