The Cenotaph, that now sits prominently in front of the Badlands Community Facility will be rededicated soon. To honour the occasion the families of two of the names that will be added will be in attendance.
The daughter, three nephews, great niece, and six other relatives of Signalman Reginald Greentree, Royal Canadian Corps of Signals will be present. The sister and nephew of Craftsman James Charles Preisig, Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, will attend as well.
Reginald Greentree was the son of Thomas Patrick Greentree and served in World War II. He died on December 16, 1944, at the age of 32 and is buried in a Canadian War Cemetery in Belgium. According to the Hills of Home, Reginald was born in the Valley, but left for Grande Prairie after 1926 with his father. Upon his death, he left behind his wife and one child.
James Preisig, the son of Cecil “Slim” and Irene of Rosedale, a letter published in The Forty-Niner, the official publication on the 49th Battalion the Loyal Edmonton Regiment in 1948 suggests that James died in 1946 after developing a severe illness in Holland.
James was 25 at the time of his death and is buried in Drumheller.
The other two being honoured on the cenotaph are Lieutenant Charles Alain Chisnall, who served with the 2nd Squadron RFC/RAF in World War I, and Private George Hill Brown, who served during World War II mining coal in East Coulee.
The Cenotaph was moved to its new location last Fall in time for the Remembrance Day Ceremonies. The Legion will be rededicating the newly refurbished Cenotaph.
Reg Bennett, a local history buff, has been working tirelessly to complete an extensive Honour Roll of community members who served. Bennett had made contact with surviving family members and invited them to the ceremony.
“They will be here at the June 3 ceremony and they asked me to speak to introduce the servicemen that are being honoured and the family members,” said Bennett.
The ceremony will also be attended by Drumheller-Stettler MLA Rick Strankman, and members of the Drumheller Town Council.
“To bring it out in a place of prominence, it should be there. It’s now a focal point and central part of our Town. It’s a great thing that we have done. It’s a real tribute for everything our veterans have done for us,” said Mayor Terry Yemen.
The rededication ceremony will be taking place on Sunday, June 3, at 4:30 p.m.
