Sikh Remembrance Day Ceremony

November 9, 2023 – Defence Stories

Caption

Honoring the Legacy: Sikh Soldiers Pay Tribute to Private Buckam Singh, a Hero of WWI.
Credit: Major Sarabjot Anand

A solemn ceremony was held for a Sikh war hero on Sunday November 5, 2023, at a Kitchener cemetery.

Every year, residents and Canadian Armed Forces soldiers and veterans gather at Mount Hope Cemetery to honour the sacrifice of Private Buckam Singh. He was one of only nine Sikh soldiers who served in the Canadian Armed Forces during the First World War.

Singh was injured at the Battle of Flanders in 1916. He returned to Canada in 1918, and then died a year later at Kitchener’s Freeport Hospital. He was just 25 years old.

The Sikh Remembrance Day Ceremony has now become one of the largest annual gatherings of Sikh soldiers and veterans in North America. The ceremony allows Canadians the opportunity to appreciate the inclusive nature of our country and the sacrifices made by heroes from diverse backgrounds in making our nation strong and secure.