Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command of The Royal Canadian Legion www.ns.legion.ca 41 It's an hour before the event is scheduled to begin. A bevy of organizers, uniformed military, first responders, and Legionnaires mix freely with students going to and from classes. It's quite crowded and there’s a palpable feeling of unreality in the atrium of Simon Fraser University’s Surrey campus. Across the room stand two TVs. Both feature the words “Iron Soldier” in stark red and black letters—sans serif, naturally, and in all caps. It's a bold look. The name and style is reminiscent of a Hollywood blockbuster. “What's going on here?” A voice asks. I'm startled. I look up from my notes to see a student in a grey hoodie regarding me with a bemused look. I don't answer right away. I almost don't know what to say to him. Where would I even begin? Perhaps the most obvious place would be on March 4th, 2006 in a small village outside of Kandahar City, Afghanistan. Captain Trevor Greene was in a meeting with the local village elders. As a CIMIC (CivilianMilitary Cooperation) officer, Trevor was there to discuss Canadian reconstructive efforts with the locals. As a sign of respect towards the elders, he had removed his helmet. This gesture nearly cost him his life. A teenaged Afghan boy, under the influence of the Taliban, savagely buried a homemade axe deep into Trevor's skull, nearly cleaving his brain in two. His escort, a platoon from A-Company of the 1st Battalion PPCLI, killed the boy and managed to drag him to safety amid the heavy fire of an ambush, and within a short time Trevor was on the operating table in Kandahar airfield with some of the best trauma surgeons in the world working feverishly to save his life. There’s a saying about the Kandahar Airfield hospital: “If you arrive alive, you will survive.” The surgeons were as good as their word that day. Trevor pulled through the night, and after stabilizing, he was sent to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Centre in Germany to begin an uncertain recovery. It’s now about five minutes until the event begins. The atrium has calmed down a bit. Those students who have class have left, and those who are staying wait patiently outside the ring of chairs. Their curiosity about the “Iron Soldier” has gotten the best of them. The wail of bagpipes can be heard distantly—they must be practicing outside—and cadets rush about, furiously setting up more chairs to accommodate the larger-than-expected crowd. Most of the dignitaries wait patiently. Some play idly with their phones. The President of BC/Yukon Command of the Legion paces mechanically, lips pursed and eyes distant. He is practicing his speech in his head. No one who has a stake in this event is relaxed. It's no surprise. A lot of effort went into it. Today is a culmination of sorts. Iron Soldier (by Joseph Waugh) continued....
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