Remembrance Day vigil returns to downtown Chatham [Video]

Christ Church in Chatham is organizing the return of an honour guard vigil at the downtown cenotaph ahead of Remembrance Day next month.

Community groups and volunteer residents will stand guard for one-hour shifts beginning on November 10 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and then again on Remembrance Day between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.

“We’re not going through the night for safety’s sake,” explained Reverend John Maroney, who noted the scaled back vigil will be the first at the cenotaph since before the COVID-19 pandemic in November 2019.

According to Maroney, there’s concern for personal safety in the downtown core during the overnight hours.

“We don’t want anybody standing vigil during the night,” Maroney said. “Just people coming up and harassing those who are standing vigil during the night. And, I mean, it happens everywhere, so it’s just a matter of safety, and that’s all.”

The first vigil …