When renovations took place at Georgetown District High School this year, something historically special was discovered – two plaques engraved with the names of former students and staff who died in World War I, World War II, the Korean War and a peacekeeping mission in Egypt.
Ideas started churning about how best to display these plaques given it is the school’s 125th anniversary. Then International Baccalaureate Diploma Program students decided they not only wanted the plaques to be placed in a high-profile place in the school, they wanted to recognize the sacrifices of these brave soldiers by telling their stories.
The work culminated in Georgetown District High School recognizing 21 former students and one staff member with individual plaques, complete with pictures and biographies, called the Memorial Wall.
The IB History students discovered many families of these soldiers still live in Georgetown but detailed records about their lives are largely unavailable. Not only did students learn much about themselves through this discovery process, there were a series of curriculum connections.
Specifically, IB students are studying the history of the Americas, and the task to research a Canadian soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice helped teach that. IB Program Coordinator Randall Keast said students used a variety of methods to find information. And so, the students began to make cold calls to relatives of the soldiers, pore over microfiche files in the library, visit archives and the local Legion, talk to local historians, contact the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, search Veteran Affairs, Commonwealth War Graves, Halinet archives, as well as other online information sources.
Grade 11 student Meghan de Chastelain says the experience was “numbing” yet made the journey of remembering the sacrifices our soldiers made even more personal. The soldier she researched was Lieutenant Edwin Thornton Leslie. Part of the 164th (Halton and Dufferin) Battalion, he died at the age of 24 in WWI.
“I think all the soldiers who gave their lives are equally important,” she says.
Grade 11 student Wayne Fang says, “I thought it was a unique project; it teaches us how to honour soldiers.”
De Chastelain is especially proud to be able to help assemble the wall during the 125th anniversary year. In fact, she said if it not for the sacrifices of soldiers, Georgetown District High School wouldn’t be able to celebrate 125 years and other milestones like its new Field of Dreams sports facility.
“These soldiers had families and they gave that up to go to war to give us a chance to have families and a future. It gives you a lot pride for your country.”
IB coordinator Keast was very helpful and supportive of this project, de Chastelain stresses.
Keast can’t say enough about the hard work and determination his students showed in compiling these soldiers’ stories, as well the learning students experienced completing this project.
“It was needed,” Keast says of the Memorial Wall. “Twenty one Georgetown District High School students and a teacher gave their lives to defend Canada during WWI, WWII, the Korean War, and during peacekeeping in Egypt. We needed to properly recognize our students' sacrifice. This was one of our 'Building Memories' projects in this, our 125th year serving the educational needs of the Georgetown community. The students were brilliant.”
Empathy, understanding, respect, and a connection to the past are some important traits Keast hopes students garnered from this weeks-long initiative.
“All 22 Georgetown District High School soldiers now have a plaque on our Memorial Wall, thanks to these current students.”