The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Kelly Carrington Staff Writer Heading off in matching red jackets, four local members of the Girl Guides joined 16 girls from Pukatawagan and The Pas to discover part of their heritage. Sarah Morrison, Taylor Oliynyk, Kelsie Parthenay and Monique Wall spent their recent spring break overseas along with leader Eyrin Wiita. 'It was a great experience,' said Oliynyk, 14. 'It's definitely something I'd do again,' said Wall, 16. Wall is the lone Ranger in the Flin Flon group while the other three are Pathfinders. The group took the Footsteps to Freedom tour and visited war memorials and other sights in countries including Amsterdam, France and Germany. There was a strong focus on the Second World War, as the trip gave the girls insight into the world that was. 'I'm thankful I'm here now and not then,' said Morrison, 13. One of the most memorable experiences for Morrison and Oliynyk was visiting Anne Frank's house. 'It was eerie, but good to know about her and that she was there,' said Morrison, who drew agreement from Oliynyk. Though the girls had learned a bit about Anne Frank in school, Morrison says getting to see her house and hearing the stories made it all the more real. She says she now sees the ignorance when people use the term 'Jewish' as an insult. 'I tell people to stop saying that. They just don't understand,' Morrison said. Wall found her best memory at Vimy Ridge, where the group took time to walk the premises. The site includes a monument to Canadian soldiers who never made it home from the infamous battle of Vimy Ridge. The girls scanned it for any familiar names. See 'Journ...' on pg. 5 Continued from pg. 4 Wall said the monument was another key memory of hers from the trip. With a strong focus on Remembrance Day, all of the girls agreed that the meaning of Nov. 11 has changed in their eyes. 'It'll be different for life, not just this year. I was there. I did that,' said Wall. Leader Wiita grew up listening to war stories and hearing the history firsthand from her grandfathers. 'I got those stories,' she says, 'but these girls didn't. 'But they understand it now.' Wiita's most significant memory will come from watching the girls' faces and seeing what they were able to experience. 'I was (also) impressed with how respectful the girls were,' she said. 'They did Flin Flon proud. They will be great leaders of tomorrow.' Parthenay, who was unable to comment in person, said her favourite experience of the trip was the chocolate museum in Brugge, Belgium. Week-long trip Over the course of the week-long trip, the girls were in Amsterdam where they toured the city, visited Anne Frank's house, and stopped by Volendam and Zaanse Schans _ where they spent a few hours in a clog shop. They also spent time in the Dutch countryside looking at the windmills before heading to a fishing village. In Brugge, the group toured the chocolate shops and a chocolate museum. The trip to Vimy Ridge had the girls touring the trenches. 'They were so small and claustrophobic,' said Oliynyk. 'It was cramped with just us in there.' 'Not knowing if there was going to be someone there with a gun when you came out,' Wall added. The girls attended the Last Post Ceremony at Menin Gates, where their nationality earned them praise. Wiita said there was a crowd in front of them who thought the girls were American. As soon as they said they were Canadian, the girls were pushed to the front of the crowd so they could watch the ceremony. 'I was scared that we'd go over and they wouldn't know what Guides was,' said Wall. Though they had to explain to a few people, there was one person who knew just what it was _ and where they were from. The girls ran into a former Guide leader from Manitoba while at Vimy Ridge. 'We shared stories with her and she shared her stories,' said Wall. The Flin Flon girls laid a wreath at Vimy Ridge on behalf of their Guides group, and each member of them received a pilgrim medal through a ceremony. After experiencing the trenches of Vimy Ridge, the girls made their way to the champagne district of Reims, France. They toured the Cathedral de Notre Dame, Moet and Chandon. Another favourite for Morrison was the boat tour of Neckar River, Germany. The group made their way to the Heidelberg Castle. An eye opening experience was visiting Dachau _ Nazi Germany's first concentration camp. 'The grounds were huge,' said Wall. 'I always thought of it as a small, little place, but it was about eight football fields.' Next, the girls took a horsedrawn carriage to the Neuschwanstein Castle. 'Didn't you feel like a princess,' Morrison asked the others. Dinner and a show was next as the group stopped at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. Between the three girls present for an interview and leader Wiita, they remembered some of the interesting and funny things about the tripÊ_ like the fact that they had to pay to use the restroom. 'I was able to order my meals in French,' noted Morrison. Wiita remembered there was beer on the McDonald's menu in France. Shopping for clogs _ wooden shoes _ was another fond memory for the group. The whole experience was different for each person, but at the end they all had one realization. 'I learned a different perspective,' said Oliynyk. '(Seeing these things firsthand) just means so much more,' said Morrison. While leaving a hotel in Germany, the owner stopped Wiita and asked 'please try to think well of us.' 'There was remorse of what happened there (during the Second World War),' said Wiita. 'I didn't expect that.' The group fundraised to go on the trip as each person raised roughly $3,700. The girls spent a week in Europe but will have memories to last a lifetime.
