Veterans, community, remember and pay tribute to Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan

A new inscription honouring Canadian soldiers who served in Afghanistan was formally recognized at a ceremony at the Lethbridge cenotaph Wednesday morning.

“It all kind of came to fruition last November, right after Remembrance Day,” explained Chuck Gresl, a decorated captain, who served two tours of duty as a detachment commander in Kandahar.

“I was talking with Matt (Matthew McHugh) and started looking around and noticed that small communities, like Wainwright. had a plaque on their cenotaph recognizing Afghanistan. The War Memorial in Ottawa recognized Afghanistan and I thought, why can’t we recognize it in our own city? And, so we worked with City Council and the Legion and we made it happen today.”

Raised in the Crowsnest Pass, Gresl now calls Lethbridge home and is actively involved in the Royal Canadian Legion’s General Stewart branch.