The province is commissioning a new statue to pay homage to the province’s wartime legacy.
The statue will be placed at the foot of the steps of Confederation Building, alongside the ones of Demasduit and her family, and John Cabot.
Morgan MacDonald has been commissioned to create the statue—the artistic concept for which was unveiled at Confederation Building this afternoon.
It has been argued that Newfoundland and Labrador was forever changed after losing a generation of bright young men in WWI. Despite that loss, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians signed up without hesitation to fight in WWII and the Korean Conflict.
The duty to serve continued through the 1990s and 2000s with many local soldiers serving in the Gulf War and Afghanistan.
Andrew Furey says he hopes remembrance will be seen as a big part of his legacy as premier.
“I can’t think of a better announcement to be my last” Furey told reporters on Thursday. “The Unknown Soldier was such an important part of my tenure…and to have a commemorative statue on the front steps of Confederation Building, it’s a nice way to finish” his time as premier says Furey.
The provincial government also set aside $1 million to expand the Trail of the Caribou Commemoration Program to ensure that young residents remember the sacrifices of those who came before them.
