It was the pleasure of Sgt. of Arms and Poppy Chairman Comrade Ralph Page to award Kristen Hopkins, of Mahone Bay’s, Bayview Community School, her first place award and cheque for her poem November Eleventh. Which she wrote for 2011’s Remembrance Day literary Contest. She has won at the branch level, then Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command Choose her poem, now the poem is going to Ottawa for the National Competition. All of us at RCL Mahone Bay Branch 49 wish you luck.

On November eleventh we gather around
And for one brief moment there is no sound
As we all think about those soldiers who fought
We wonder,
What would happen if they hadn’t gone?
Would we be safe?
Would we have the choices that we have now?
Or would we all be leaving to go and fight?
We now thank them for going,
Making everything alright.
Everywhere in the world there are families hoping,
Thinking of their loved ones wounded and hurting
Laying flowers by graves, in fields of soldiers.
On this day we lay wreaths and poppies and crosses
Four ours and other painful losses
Most people know someone or more
Who was injured in the war
For me it was my great uncle Alex
Twenty-four years old now buried in Sicily
They go for a reason we do not remember for a reason
They made us free, the least we can do is thank them
On November Eleventh we gather around
And for one brief moment there is no sound