Friday, November 10, 2017

Waterloo remembers

Waterloo students visit a war cemetery at Bény-Sur-Mer, Normandy in 2009.

The University of Waterloo community will pause for a few moments today to remember Canada's war dead.

The official date of the Remembrance Day commemoration is always November 11, the anniversary of the day in 1918 when the guns fell silent at the end of the First World War. Much of Remembrance Day's imagery is connected to that conflict, including the poppies, sold by the Royal Canadian Legion and worn on lapels, that recall the wildflowers that grow in the fields of Flanders, in north Belgium, as mentioned in the famous poem by Lt.-Col. John McCrae that is read at many Remembrance Day commemorations.

Though Remembrance Day falls on a weekend this year, it will be recognized on campus today.

For those members of the University community looking to mark the occasion on campus, the University of Waterloo Chaplain's Association has organized a Remembrance Day interfaith service in the Student Life Centre's Great Hall beginning at 10:45 a.m. The service will include prayers for peace offered by representatives from different religious traditions, the traditional two minutes of silence at 11:00 a.m., and music from the Conrad Grebel chapel choir and a student piper. Everyone is welcome.

The University of Waterloo Engineering Society is also hosting a Remembrance Day event in POETS in CPH from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. The event will feature a reading of In Flander's Fields, a moment of silence and the playing of The Last Post by Ben O'Callaghan on the trumpet, and other traditions.

The Mennonite Archives of Ontario Gallery located on the third floor of Conrad Grebel University College is one of the display locations for an international project called The World Remembers 1914-1918. Every day from September 24 to November 11, the names of 661,818 soldiers and nurses on all sides of the First World War killed in 1917 will be displayed at more than 60 locations around the world. The commemoration is a unique expression of remembrance, reconciliation and education, and shows the enormous human cost of the war. The Gallery will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. today and from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 11.

The Gallery is also the location of the exhibit “Sites of Nonresistance: Ontario Mennonites and the First World War.”

The CBC has a list of local community Remembrance Day events at cenotaphs and other memorials around the region taking place on Saturday, November 11.

President's Remembrance Day statement

This is the latest post on President Feridun Hamdullahpur's blog.

On Remembrance Day we come together as a nation to honour the Canadian men and women who fought and died in the name of peace and freedom.

We pause at the eleventh hour, on the eleventh day, of the eleventh month to reflect on the memory of our brave servicemen and women. Not only reflect on their sacrifices, but what each of them stood for: their selflessness in the service of others.

Canadian soldiers not only protect fellow Canadians during times of war. They defend the vulnerable around the world during peacekeeping missions. We are forever indebted to their service.

November 6^th marked the 100^th anniversary of the end of the Battle of Passchendaele where Canadian soldiers led a decisive victory for the Allied forces on the Western Front of the First World War. Through the mire of nearly impenetrable mud, our soldiers led the way. They were tasked to take the village of Passchendaele because of their grit, determination, and resourcefulness. The final push uphill to take Passchendaele was a major victory after months of concentrated conflict, but at great cost.

The battle brought unimaginable death and destruction. Allied casualties reached over 275,000 soldiers either killed or wounded, including over 16,000 Canadian troops. Those who fought and died did so courageously, and those who were fortunate enough to return home ensured that the bravery of their fallen brethren is never forgotten.

We remember so that the sacrifices of the fallen are never gone from our collective memory.

Today’s Canada is a community of powerful diversity. We work collaboratively with countries we once adamantly opposed in conflicts past. This is part of the sacrifice our men and women fought for. Not the destruction of an opposing force, but the prospect that one day we need not fight.

We honour their sacrifice today as one community. Please join me in continuing this homage every day by acting upon the ideals that make this great country a beacon of peace and prosperity.

I ask you to join me and pause for a moment in silent remembrance, and pay tribute to the bravery of our fallen and to all those who have fought and continue to defend our freedom and the safety of others.

Lest we forget.

Ford, Bertoia collect OUA Football Major Awards

This is an excerpt of an article originally published on the Athletics website.

The Waterloo Warriors football program announced its re-arrival on the U SPORTS football scene in 2017, as their historic turnaround created one of the most memorable seasons in program history. And now, they’re adding some hardware to go along with the memories.

Head coach Chris Bertoia has been named the winner of the Dave “Tuffy” Knight award as OUA coach of the year, while rookie quarterback Tre Ford has claimed the Norm Marshall OUA rookie of the year award.

Ford, the freshman quarterback out of Niagara Falls, becomes the second player in school history to claim the Marshall award (Jordan Verdone – 2008). Playing in Bertoia’s quarterback platoon system with veteran Lucas McConnell, the electric rookie finished sixth in the OUA in rushing yards with 717, fourth in passing efficiency (158.8), and first in completion percentage (66.7 percent).

Coming out of A.N. Myer high school in Niagara Falls with twin brother (and OUA all-rookie team cornerback) Tyrell, the expectations were high for the young signal-caller. But in a season where a number of rookie quarterbacks saw the field regularly, Ford was voted by the OUA coaches as the head of the class.

“Tre is very deserving of this award,” said Bertoia. “He had a lot of stiff competition, and he had a lot of pressure to be the guy to help turn this program around. He lived up to expectations, obviously.”

Ford’s dynamic first season was made all the more impressive given the fact that he missed the team’s week 4 game against Carleton with an injury. He was a constant threat with both his legs and arm, and he gained nearly first-down yardage every time he kept the ball: Ford averaged 9.3 yards per passing attempt, and an OUA-best 9.3 yards per carry. All told, Ford totalled 10 touchdowns – four rushing and six passing – in just seven games.

“He’s just electric,” said Bertoia. “Tre represents everything we want as Waterloo Warriors football players: he’s a great player, a great student, and a great person. He’s exciting to watch and exciting to coach, and I’m proud of him.”

As for his own award, Bertoia was the odds-on favourite after leading his alma mater to a huge turnaround – the club finished 4-4 after back-to-back 0-8 seasons. But the down-to-earth head coach pointed to his staff, his players, and his family as the main drivers for his success in 2017.

“This is a we award, not a me award,” said Bertoia. “I have to thank my wife first and foremost, she lets me do this job, and I couldn’t have done it without her. And the award is also about the players, and their efforts. It’s a credit to them and our coaching staff who works so tirelessly and put in the time and effort.”

Read the rest of the article on the Athletics website.

Photograph by Steve Brooks.

By-elections and other notes

The Secretariat has issued a call for nominations for two vacancies on Senate as the following by-elections will be taking place:

• One faculty-at-large representative , term to 30 April 2020

The nominee must hold a regular faculty appointment (see Policy 76)

• One graduate student representative, term to 30 April 2018

Nominations for these appointments will be accepted beginning Monday 13 November for one week. To submit a nomination, please complete the appropriate nomination form and deliver to Emily Schroeder in Needles Hall, room 3060. See the Secretariat website or contact Emily Schroeder for more information. Completed nomination forms must have five nominators' signatures, as required by Senate Bylaw 3, and must be received no later than 3:00 p.m. on Monday 20 November.

If required, electronic elections will open on Wednesday 22 November. Please refer to Senate Bylaw 3 for more information on nominations and elections. Any questions relating to any of the above may be directed to Emily Schroeder at extension 32749.

Join the Faculty of Science on Thursday November 16 for the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences annual Paul Karrow Lecture Series, “New Fossil Discoveries from the End of the Age of Dinosaurs in Antarctica”.

Speaking will be Dr. Matthew Lamanna, an Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology at Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, PA. His research focuses on dinosaurs, birds, and crocodilians that lived during the Cretaceous Period — the third and final time period of the Mesozoic Era, or Age of Dinosaurs.

This evening talk will be held in EIT 1015 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. and details the discoveries of Dr. Lamanna's project in Antarctica, the Antarctic Peninsula Paleontology Project.

Included are photos and videos that detail the experience of collecting fossils in this remote, inhospitable environment. Dr. Lamanna will also show a new short film, Expedition Antarctica during the talk.

This lecture is free and open to the public. Please register to attend.