Retired Canadian Forces General Roméo Dallaire will be in Greater Sudbury to speak about peace and reconcilliation.
The public lecture is scheduled for Oct. 19 at 7 p.m., at Laurentian University's Fraser Auditorium.
The lecture was organized by Cathy Heffernan, a nurse at Sudbury Regional Hospital. She was able to experience Dallaire's ability to promote peace and reconcilliation during volunteer missions in Rwanda.
"Peace and reconciliation is a message that many people may struggle to understand, but should be embraced and shared,” Heffernan stated in a press release. “With everything the community has been through — the year long strike with Vale, the merging of three hospitals into one and ongoing ALC pressures — we need to be reminded of what is truly important.”
While leading UN forces in Rwanda in the '90s, Dallaire was witness to a genocide that saw the death of many Hutu moderates and Tutsi peoples. The death toll is estimated to be between 800,000 and a million, and happened in just 100 days.
Dallaire returned to Canada after his tour, and became the highest-ranking Canadian soldier to admit to suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He is now a champion of veterans rights and a Liberal senator in the Canadian Senate.
The tickets are on sale at The Leprechaun on The Kingsway, the Laurentian University switchboard, and the Laurentian University bookstore for $30.
Money raised through ticket sales will go to Dallaire's foundation, which provides rehabilitation for child soldiers.
NorthernLife.ca is giving away six more tickets to the lecture. Visit www.Facebook.com/NorthernLife.ca for a chance to win.
