How it began

In Seventeen days I will be embarking on a twelve day journey to Europe with my peers. We are going to be apart of, what I think is a very, very important event, the celebration of the end of World War II. The sixty-fifth anniversary will be the last main celebration of its kind, making it that much more important.

I go to St.Dominic Catholic Secondary School in Bracebridge Ontario, currently in grade twelve and excited for the future. Ever since grade ten history class I have grown a great appreciation for Canada and everything that its citizens have done for our land.

Near the end of grade 11, last year, there was a presentation for grade tens and elevens about a trip to Europe. I heard it over the announcements a couple days before and thought I might as well check it out. The day came and down to the cafeteria I went, at first there was no way I'd go on a trip to Europe(not that kind of person), but something happened that day that gave me the courage to tell myself I should at least try. The presentation got me excited and gave me a little more information on what exactly the trip was all about. It made me think of my grandpa who was apart of the RCAF during the war and also got me thinking of the different stories I've heard about the war. There were only going to be around twenty students selected to go and we had to fill out a sheet and write a small essay on why we should be chosen. I knew after that presentation I wanted to go, I needed to go. There was a meeting a little while after our deadline for the essays, I was called down to find out I had been chosen to go, that was a very good day. Now I had to save up money,prepare and anxiously wait for the day to come.