N.B. high school students trace steps of North Shore Regiment for D-Day 80th anniversary

As the 80th anniversary of D-Day is marked on Thursday, about 270 students and teachers from the eight Anglophone North high schools are part of the event as they retrace the footsteps of the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment.

On June 6, 1944, Canadian, British and American soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy in what is considered to be the beginning of the end of the Second World War.

The soldiers the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment were among 14,000 from Canada who took part in the D-Day landings on Juno Beach.

Brandon Savage, a Miramichi Valley High School teacher taking part in the trip, says there have been a lot of memorable stops.

"We ... have students individually who have identified loved ones who are buried [over here] — in some cases that none of their family or descendents have ever had come over to see them," said

History teacher Brandon Savage kneels next to the grave of Maj. John Archibald MacNaughton of the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment. (Submitted by Meredith Caissie)

On the first day of the invasion alone, 381 Canadians were killed, with more than 5,000 dead by the time the Battle of Normandy, codenamed Operation Overlord, concluded three months later.

France's Carpiquet is remembered as the graveyard of the North Shore Regiment, where the regiment faced the heaviest losses.

Leading up to the trip, Savage said many of the students studied the North Shore Regiment and its impact on the war.

Carly Guitard, a Dalhousie Regional High School student, said being part of the delegation has had an impact on her.

"Seeing it and walking where they walked and being here in all of these places, it really means a lot," she said.

Savage said the trip actually follows the regiment's steps in reverse, starting in Amsterdam, then into the Netherlands and Belgium. The last part of the trip is spent in France, with the students at Normandy to commemorate the 80th anniversary.

The delegation stopped at the Holten Canadian War Cemetery in the Netherlands. Carly Guitard was able to visit her great-uncle's grave on this stop. (ASD-North/X)

Savage said when they were in the Netherlands, they participated in a march to honour American paratroopers who were killed in Operation Market Garden, an attempt to create a corridor for the Allies in the Nazi-occupied region.

That march, he said, was done in silence out of respect.

"It's about a two-kilometre walk across this walking bridge and if you can imagine, all 270 students and teachers are quiet the entire time, and it's just a shuffling of feet," he said.

"This generation doesn't get a lot of credit, I think we can become critical. These kids are great, and they really get it.

"I know it really blew away the veterans the level of respect that these students are bringing to the table."

Savage said it's always great to see students learn and grow throughout a semester, but when taking the students on a trip like this, that growth happens almost instantaneously.

He said the hope is that the students will return from the trip understanding the importance of remembrance and passing that on to their friends and family.

And for Savage, the experience holds a personal spot in his heart. His grandfather, Bill Savage, would often speak about his experiences as a D-Day veteran with the North Shore Regiment.

"His experiences and his willingness to share that with me has led me to … the career choice that I have as a history teacher and has really driven me to want to create these experiences for our students."

The students stopped at Hotel de Wereld on Day 4 of the trip. The hotel is where the German army in the Netherlands surrendered, as the war in Europe was drawing to a close. (ASD-North/X)

Guitard, too, has a personal connection to the trip. She had three great-uncles who fought in the Battle of Normandy, one of whom died in the Netherlands defending a bridge.

She was able to visit the Holten Canadian War Cemetery in the Netherlands on this trip, where her great-uncle is buried. There, she met a gravekeeper, who she said  instantly knew her who her great-uncle was upon seeing his grave number.

"I was amazed that he knew so much about these soldiers and that really reinforced … why I'm here," she said.

Guitard said it was emotional for her being there and recognizing that her great-uncle died to liberate real people who have real stories.

Afterwards, she said her family was overjoyed when she shared the story and sent them photos.

"My grandfather passed away a few years ago and that was his brother, and I really wish that he would have been here to see me go on this journey," she said.

"But it's really amazing. I feel like I'm honouring him and all my family by doing this."