1001431319Julie Simmonds
What does Remembrance Day mean to our military children today as our soldiers continue to embark on Canada’s mission in Afghanistan?
Three Ubiquitous teens took part in the popular web-based project called “We Remember,” a production of the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC), where they share their stories about life in a military family.
Blogger ‘Miss M’ Melora Twomey; Kari Kruse, daughter of Editor Jill Kruse; and Shane Gamble, son of Avid Reader Terersa Gamble; talk about what Remembrance Day means to them as children whose family members have served in the military at home and in Afghanistan.
“I thought that it was great that I was able to participate in the project because I was able to talk and write about my experiences in military life from a kid’s perspective,” said Melora Twomey. “Usually in the media it’s the adult views you hear or read about, so being a military kid my views are slightly different.”
The CBC’s web project went live on November 10, 2010. According to the CBC’s website, they wanted to offer a “rare opportunity to hear the hidden stories and discover new perspectives on the meaning of Remembrance Day.”
For Kari Kruse this was an opportunity for her to talk to the Canadian public about how military families cope with this lifestyle. “I hope that more people are now educated on what happened to my family. I also hope that they learned about what really goes on in Afghanistan so that they don’t stereotype soldiers as people who just carry around guns and are always shooting,” she said.
Three weeks ago, Ubiquitous Magazine ran an article, encouraging readers to get involved in the CBC project after receiving a call from producer Roma Andrusiak, who was seeking military families to participate.
“We felt that this was a really great project for military families. It gives us a chance to be heard and an opportunity for Canadians to learn what Remembrance Day means to us as military families,” said publisher, Cyndi Mills.
The project is part of CBC’s citizen journalist program. According to Roma Andrusiak, the response from military families was positive after the Ubiquitous article ran in October’s e-zine. She said the videos have been so popular that the CBC will be using the video snippets on television, encouraging viewers to see the stories on CBC’s website.
“The We Remember site was among the most-viewed items in an extensive Remembrance Day feature collection,” she said.
As young journalists and citizens of Canada, the teens were happy to participate in the project and they were pleased with the results. “I felt proud to have my stuff on CBC’s website,” said Twomey.
“I think it’s a very big accomplishment having a story published on the CBC at only 13 years old,” said Kruse, “I’d do it all again if I got the chance.”
For Ubiquitous Magazine, this was an opportunity to showcase enlightening stories about military life in our main stream media. “Ubiquitous Magazine was happy to assist CBC in this project and we are proud to have helped in making it such a great success,” said Mills.
To view CBC’s “We Remember” webisodes, go to their website.
