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Sudbury marks 65th anniversary of end of Korean War

Small ceremony honours sacrifices made to protect those fleeing persecution

Sixty-five years ago, fighting on the Korean peninsula — known as the Korean War — came to an end.

Although South and North Korea are technically still in conflict, there has been an armistice since that day. It's that declaration of peace that was celebrated through a small ceremony at the Civic Memorial Cemetery on Second Avenue this afternoon.

Members of the Korean War Veterans Association were joined by Royal Canadian Legion members to raise colours and lay wreaths in memory of those who fought and died in that war.

Nelson Wall, who is 86 years old, is the second vice-president of the Sudbury branch of the Korean War Veterans Association.

Wall spent 14 months in Korea, and while he was a cook and didn't fight on the front lines, he experienced his fair share of devastation.

The compound in which he served was about three miles from the front lines, Wall said, but it was close enough that often enough, he could see projectiles fired from the large guns fly overhead.

“It was scary, but at the time, it seemed like we weren't winning or losing, and we were very happy when we got news that it was over,” he said.

it was three or four in the afternoon when news came down, and after supper, we all headed to the canteen to celebrate.

“I remember there were so many people there, they only had a few beers left, and I didn't get any,” he told the small crowd gathered for the celebration.

Leonard Kim, a local member of the Korean-Canadian Association of Sudbury, said it's important for him, his children and his grandchildren to continue to remember the sacrifice made by so many in that war.

“My own children are third generation Korean-Canadians, and we don't want them to forget, and we want them to be education on the history of the sacrifices that so many countries made on behalf of our freedom,” he said. 

“The veterans here today are Canadian soldiers who fought under the UN flag to defend the freedom of innocent South Korean people who were fleeing persecution and war. Their sacrifices will never be forgotten.”

Several hundred soldiers from Sudbury were in Korea, several of whom lost their lives in that war, he said. 

“We want to make sure future generations understand that sacrifices,” Kim said.


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Arron Pickard

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