Hundreds of volunteers planted 50,000 flags across Sunnybrook’s Bayview campus in Toronto on Tuesday, honouring veterans ahead of Remembrance Day.

Community members, staff, students and military participants gathered at Sunnybrook Veterans Centre for the 16th annual Operation Raise a Flag, CBC Toronto reported. The display includes flags featuring Indigenous and Canadian artwork and sets the scene for the centre’s Nov. 11 ceremony on Wednesday.

Kelly Cole, president of the Sunnybrook Foundation, told CBC that more than 600 volunteers took part so residents would wake up on Remembrance Day to “a sea of red” — a reminder that their community is thinking of them.

Sunnybrook opened in 1948 as a hospital for war veterans. Its Veterans Centre now has more than 120 residents, including 45 who are over 100, according to Cole. Funds raised through Operation Raise a Flag support programs including art and music therapy for veterans.

Faith Robinson, one of the volunteers from Deer Park Junior and Senior Public School, told CBC Toronto that recognizing veterans matters “so they don’t get forgotten.”

Veteran Mortimer “Mort” Lightstone, a former Royal Canadian Air Force captain who served in the Korean War and Vietnam War, said Remembrance Day brings back both good and bad memories. He urged people to reflect on the sacrifices behind the freedoms they enjoy.

“Freedom is not free,” Lightstone told CBC Toronto. “[It’s] obtained at great expense.”

Sources