SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. - In the shadow of a towering white cross, retired Major Ron Hatton stands in formation with veterans of the Royal Canadian Legion at the Credit Union Place arena. His fingers are tightly curled around the flagpole, which he’s carried in honour for the past 15 years at the annual Remembrance Day ceremony.
Hatton is among the hundreds of military members assembled in the arena on Sunday morning, watched by thousands seated row on row to observe the end of the First World War in a two-minute silence – 100 years to the day – and remember those who have died in the line of duty.
“You remember all the people that have passed away through age, all the people you flew with, but I feel sad for all those young people that died. It’s sad,” he choked up. “But some survived...They said those that enlisted were 20 and 21 today, but a lot of them lied about their age to get in the military.”
Hatton enlisted as an electronics officer at 18. He served 28 years in the Air Force, deployed in hotspots around the world before he retired from service and spent the next 13 years working in a defense company called General Dynamics.
“A highlight of my career was a rescue,” Hatton’s eyes came alive as he recalled the event with warmth. “We were about 2,000 miles away from shore on the south side of Iceland when we flew over a Danish fishing vessel that was sinking. The captain of the boat didn’t speak a word of English…
“He was from the Faroe Islands, and it just so happened we had the only Danish-speaking aircraft captain at the time, so they conversed and we brought in a ship to rescue them. The whole crew was saved because we just happened to be there at the right time.”
You remember all the people that have passed away through age, all the people you flew with, but I feel sad for all those young people that died. It’s sad.” - retired Major Ron Hatton
Hatton served three years in Iceland searching for submarines and tracking them. He brought his wife, Dorothy, along with their two children, to the land of fire and ice. It was there he attended the historic Reykjavik Summit in 1986.
“I was right there when U.S. president Ronald Reagan and General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev held a summit meeting. I enjoyed that, and I remember Reagan thanking everyone for their service and security,” shared Hatton, as the memory flashed to life across his face.
He acknowledged, “Like a lot of military people at the air force base, I met my wife at the Summerside Legion during a dance. This is our 50th year of being together. Dorothy said, ‘I followed you all around the world, now it’s time for you to follow me and move back home to P.E.I.”
Although Hatton, now aged 75, has many fond memories of his time served, he still has a heavy head and heart over the young people that lost their lives through war.
“In those days at first it was a sense of adventure with friends, but soon that enthusiasm would dwindle,” he said.
Corporal Trace Handrahan, of the P.E.I. Regiment, acknowledged he can "only imagine" what the soldiers went through.
“I came here to thank the veterans for their service because I find a lot of young people today are not fully aware of what went on," said the 24-year-old.
Handrahan compared his experience in the Reserves to that of a “band of brothers” and offered some sage words of advice.
“We must remember the people that courageously died for our freedom and cherish the future they believed in.”
