A Remembrance Day Real-World Learning (RWL) project that saw R. Tait McKenzie grade 6 Students visit a local cemetery to place stones on veterans’ graves and they discovered a local soldier whose name is missing from the Almonte Cenotaph.
Former Almonte resident and WWI Veteran, Private George B. Monterville, spent the entire First World War overseas and returned Canada in 1919. He suffered a string of minor injuries and was exposed to gas several times during deployment, Monterville was hospitalized with severe lung disease, passing away in June 1920 from war-related injuries and buried nearby in the Auld Kirk Cemetery. His name was never added to the Almonte Cenotaph.
The students in Jean Grant-Kearney’s grade 6 class have spent much of the year researching Private George Monterville, Since November, the class had been campaigning to add Monterville’s name to the cenotaph by contacting the mayor and making presentations to the Legion. Almonte Legion Parade Marshall and Master Warrant Officer Michael Wiggins aided the students in their campaign and stated that Monterville was one of the founding members of the Almonte Legion, he was an important member of the community and the town shut down and lined the streets for his funeral parade.
Four student representatives from the grade 6 class, Nate Dlugosz, Emma Wiggins, Maya Brown and Ivy Hunt, made their pitch to members of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 240 on March 12, advocating for their support in having Private Monterville’s name added to the Cenotaph.
In response, Branch 240 put forward a motion to correct the mistake and noted they already had discussions with a local mason to clean the cenotaph. The motion passed, with work expected to begin on the cenotaph at the end of April with Private George Monterville’s name permanently engraved in its rightful place amongst his comrades.
The students will be involved in a re-dedication ceremony of the cenotaph that will occur prior to the end of the 2023-24 school year.
The press release from UCDSB can be viewed here:
https://www.ucdsb.on.ca/u_c_d_s_b_news/what_s_new/almonte_students_prompt_cenotaph_change
Subsequently, CTV News ran a story on April 11th, which can viewed at:
