- 1-Chris-and-Kalea-Lafontaine-en.jpg
- 2-Regina-Youth.jpeg
- 3-Azalia-McWatt.jpeg
- 4-Cash-Whitrow-en.JPG
- 5-Regina-youth-clean-cemetery.jpeg
- 6-Colbie-Whitrow,-Abbey-Cuellar.jpeg
- 7-Hector-Tondevold.jpeg
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
A group of about 50 Latter-day Saint youth gathered in late October 2024 to mark Remembrance Day by giving back to veterans of the First World War. The youth, ages 11 to 17, cleaned the headstones of veterans at the Regina Cemetery’s Field of Honour.
“This act of service is a way for the group to show gratitude and to remember those who served,” said Liu Lafontaine, Regina communication director for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Three young friends had seen a post on JustServe for BillonGraves. “The youth came up with this project idea from the JustServe app on their phones,” Lafontaine explained. “[They] figured it would be neat to go to the graveyard and clean the stones in the Field of Honour at our city cemetery and get it looking nice before Remembrance Day.”
Youth participation included scrubbing headstones with soap and water, buffing plaques, cleaning off lichen and bagging leaves. Nephi Macaranas, one of the youth participants, said he likes to think of their service in the cemetery as “honouring all the veterans who went through it all.”
Another youth participant, Azalia McWatt, reflected, “I feel a bunch of different things — happy but also sad because [these veterans] died. But they did it just for us, which makes me feel special.”
As they worked, many of the youth read aloud the soldiers’ names on the gravestones they were cleaning. “I was really looking forward to this project because I wanted to do my part in trying to make these headstones clean and shiny for Remembrance Day,” said Kalea Lafontaine. “I wanted to honour those who gave their lives for my freedom.”
Chris Lafontaine added, “I was happy to come with a bunch of friends to serve in a small way. We may not have made a huge difference, but my eyes and heart were open to the blessings I can receive through serving. My twin sister and I plan to come back on Remembrance Day and lay carnations on these headstones in the Field of Honour. ... We want to do this every year from now on.”