Friday morning, in front of the Bradford West Gwillimbury Court House, Mayor James Leduc, members of council, and members of the local Dutch community congregated for a flag raising to signify Dutch Liberation Day.
Each year on May 5, the Dutch reflect and remember the liberation of their country from Nazi occupation during the Second World War; it follows the Remembrance of the Dead on May 4.
On May 5, 1945, Canadian General Charles Folks accepted the surrender of the German forces from German Commander-in-Chief Johannes Blaskowitz in Netherlands, forever connecting Canada and the Dutch.
More than 7,600 Canadian soldiers died during the liberation efforts. The vast majority of the Canadian fallen are buried in three main cemeteries across the Netherlands in the communities of Bergen op Zoom, Groesbeek and Holten. The Dutch continue to honour those Canadians by teaching their children respect for the deceased soldiers in researching their shortened life stories, and the care of their graves.
Canadian troops were greeted with great gratitude and jubilation, and the memory of their sacrifices has been kept front and centre throughout the years that have passed since 1945.
