Parents, tell your children

A mother and her daughter stood on the beautifully manicured grounds of the Canadian Cemetery in Holten, the Netherlands, on May 4, 2025. Dutch children laid white and red roses on the more than one thousand graves of the Canadian fallen soldiers. Thousands of poppies fell through the sky from a helicopter above, while the harmonious sounds of the 48th Highlanders Pipes and Drums floated through the air. It was the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands. A large Canadian flag and a large Dutch flag waved proudly in unison, their brilliant colours in contrast to the somber, grey sky. That mother was me, and that daughter was my daughter.

Another mother and daughter stood quiet and afraid in their brick house in The Hague in May of 1940. The Netherlands had just fallen into the hands of the Germans. The mother’s husband had died in a motor vehicle accident a few short months before the war broke out. She had a newborn, a five-year-old daughter, and was a young, grieving widow. This mother was my great-grandmother, and her five-year-old daughter was my grandmother (my dear Oma Den Hertog).

During the five long years of the Second World War, kind neighbours and fellow church members brought them food. When two Germans took over the upper story in their home, they hid food in a space in the ceiling of the kitchen. By the time Canadian soldiers liberated The Hague in 1945, my Oma was ten years old, and her little sister was five.

Special friendship

The trip to the Netherlands that I took this past May began with a special project. In the spring of 2024, my daughter and I published a children’s book titled, Canada and the Netherlands: A World War II Story. I am the author, and she is the illustrator. The book has Dutch and English on each page to honour the special friendship between Canada and the Netherlands. Around this time, a kind lady from Veteran Affairs Canada learned of our book and invited us to meet the Canadian veterans who would be in the Netherlands for the 80th anniversary of the liberation ceremonies.

Apeldoorn celebrates

On the evening of May 2, 2025, we met with twenty Canadian World War II veterans, and their caregivers, in Apeldoorn. We heard their stories, hugged them, and promised that we would share with the next generation what they, and their fallen comrades, had done. Words cannot describe the pride and gratitude that welled up in our hearts that evening. These men (and one woman) were the rescuers of the Dutch people eighty years earlier. One veteran recited Scottish poetry to us, and another told us of his involvement in the Battle of the Scheldt. The youngest veteran was 96 years old and the oldest was 105! It was an absolute honour to interact with them and their caregivers. We will never forget that experience.

The next day was also wonderful. The City of Apeldoorn hosted a 1.5-kilometre parade down the tree lined street called “The Loo Laan.” The sun shone brightly as ten thousand people lined the street. Children and adults waved Canadian flags as they watched the veterans, armed forces and bands with pipes and drums march past. The veterans came through first and then sat to watch the rest of the parade with Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, the same princess who was born in Canada during the Second World War. The veterans were handed tulips and gifts, while clapping and cheering erupted as they passed by. It was a touching, exciting event to be a part of.

As a Canadian, I am so proud of Canada’s involvement in World War II. I thank God for the freedom I enjoy today, and I join my Dutch family in saying, “Thank you.”