Remembrance Day attracts northern crowds

It was standing room only at Remembrance Day ceremonies in Canada's three territorial capitalsThursday.

Northerners packed the Royal Canadian Legion Cadet Hall in Iqaluit, St. Patrick's High School in Yellowknife and the Canada Games Centre in Whitehorse.

In Iqaluit, residents applauded for the lone war veteran present: Colin Livingstone, a 95-year-old Second World War veteran who travelled from Cape Breton to Iqaluitto take part in the ceremony.

Nunavut Conservative MP Leona Aglukkaq and Premier Eva Aariak were among those who laid wreaths during the ceremony.

In Whitehorse, the Remembrance Day ceremony included some members from HMCS Whitehorse, whichis part of the Canadian Forces' Pacific fleet.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicole Phippard, an HMCS Whitehorse crew member who grew up in the ship's namesake city, said spending this Remembrance Day in the city wasparticularly special.

"There's a great deal of army presence and air force presence, something that we are proud of as well ... but to wear the naval uniform, and with the ship named after the city, it means so much to me," she said.

On Wednesday, HMCS Whitehorse commander Lt.-Cmdr. Angus Fedoruk spoke to students at the city's Porter Creek Secondary School about what his crew does overseas.

Fedoruk said hearing students' songs, poetry, dances and other Remembrance Day tributes meant a lot to him.

"Bases are quite often cities unto themselves. We isolate ourselves sometimes in the community," he said.

"So for us to go out and to hear a young person say that, it really encourages me that people think about this quite a bit, and it reminds me that we need to get out and connect back with the folks in Canada."

N.W.T. honours war dead

In Yellowknife, people of all ages and backgrounds packed the high school's gymnasium for prayers, hymns and tributes to Canadian soldiers.

A local museum has recently launched a website to educate northerners about hundreds of N.W.T. lakes, rivers and other natural landmarks that are named after Canadian war heroes.

The "A Place of Honour" exhibit on the Prince of Wales Heritage Centre's website features location and historical information about places like Bishop Lake, which was named after Billy Bishop, the acclaimed First World War pilot and Victoria Cross recipient.

There areat least316 places in the Northwest Territories named after casualties from the Second World War alone.