CHUTE-A-BLONDEAU, Ont. - A Canadian soldier killed in a roadside blast in southern Afghanistan was remembered Friday for his commitment to the military mission in the war-torn country.
The tour of duty was of the utmost importance to 21-year-old Patrick Lormand, who went to Afghanistan with the blessing of his family, said his uncle, Leo Villeneuve.
"He was proud to do his work, we are proud of him -- very proud of him," Villeneuve said at the cemetery behind St-Joachim Church, where family members sobbed and consoled each other.
"That was his choice and we supported him."
Lormand, who was promoted posthumously to corporal from private, was buried in his hometown of Chute-a-Blondeau in eastern Ontario.
Lormand was on a patrol in the Panjwaii district on Sept. 13 when an improvised explosive device exploded.
He served with the 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Regiment, and was based at CFB Valcartier, near Quebec City.
Following an hour-long service attended by several hundred mourners, soldiers lined the gravel roadway as a black vintage hearse carried Lormand's body to the small, well-groomed cemetery behind the church.
A handful of war veterans led the procession and the sound of gunfire echoed across the surrounding cornfields in a final military salute.
Yellow ribbons and small Canadian flags flew from white posts outside houses along the main road of the small village of 2,000, which is close to the Quebec-Ontario border.
Villeneuve remembered his nephew as a great friend to those going through rough times.
"He would chat for hours with them if they needed to and he supported them -- they knew they could count on him," Villeneuve said.
Lormand was also remembered as a bit of a daredevil who enjoyed many dangerous sports.
"There were no ... sports he wouldn't do: motocross, mountain climbing, snowboarding -- he needed those challenges," Villeneuve said.
Lormand became the 130th Canadian soldier to be killed during the Afghan mission.
The number of fatalities has since climbed to 131 with the death of Pte. Jonathan Couturier, whose armoured vehicle struck an improvised explosive device on Sept. 17.
Some of Couturier's relatives delivered an unusual antiwar message after his death, saying the soldier did not believe in the mission and thought it was pointless..
But Lormand's family said their own loved one was dedicated to the mission.
They stood by him when he said he wanted to serve in Afghanistan.
"People are entitled to their opinion, but we have ours," Villeneuve said.
"It was his choice. He wanted to help and had a desire to go there (to Afghanistan). We encouraged him and we supported his choice."
