Six Canadian military families spent their Easter Monday coming to grips with the deaths of their loved ones, killed in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan.
"The fact that he died on Easter -- Easter's a special, special day, because there's hope beyond the grave," Laurie Greenslade told CTV Atlantic Monday about her 20-year-old son, Pte. David Greenslade.
The St. John, N.B. woman choked back tears as she said it. David was the only son of Laurie and her husband.
Because David had no siblings, he truly considered himself a member of a band of brothers, she said, adding they couldn't talk him out of serving in Afghanistan.
"I felt such anguish that I couldn't stop him. It was absolutely what he wanted to do," she said. Her favourite photo of her son shows him with a huge smile on his face just before he shipped out to Afghanistan.
"He certainly believed in providing hope to the Afghan people. He wanted the children to have a good life."
Neighbour Walter Ball said he found it hard to believe a boy who used to come to his door for Halloween and deliver flyers is now dead.
The sixth soldier killed Sunday has been identified. He is Cpl. Brent Poland, 37, of Sarnia, Ont.
The names of the other soldiers were:
- Sgt. Donald Lucas, 31, of Burton, N.B.
- Cpl. Christopher Paul Stannix (reservist), 24, of Dartmouth, N.S.;
- Cpl. Aaron E. Williams, 23, of Lincoln, N.B.; and
- Pte. Kevin Vincent Kennedy, 20, of St. Lawrence, Nfld.;
Five of the soldiers were members of the Royal Canadian Regiment, 2nd Battalion, based at CFB Gagetown in New Brunswick. Stannix was with the Halifax-based Princess Louise Fusiliers.
The regimental flag at CFB Gagetown flew at half-mast on Monday.
"It hits home, but they were doing exactly what they loved," said Master Cpl. Tracy Price, himself recently wounded by a suicide bombing in Afghanistan and back at the base to recover.
"We cannot begin to tell you what Chris' loss means to us," the Stannix family said in a statement.
"Chris loved his family, he loved Canada, he loved the Canadian Forces and he loved the Fusiliers. He believed in the mission in Afghanistan and believed he and his fellow soldiers were making a difference."
The family of Sgt. Lucas said in a statement: "Don was a special man, dedicated to his family. He was an excellent father to his wonderful son and daughter, Matthew and MacKenzie. A loving husband, Don cherished his family and filled with pride at the mention of them.''
Lucas spoke to CTV Atlantic on Jan. 29, as he spent his last moments with his wife and children before leaving for Afghanistan.
"Well, they've been well prepared. This is my fifth mission, so they understand," he said.
Col. Ryan Jestin, commanding officer of CFB Gagetown, said he's been inspired by the strength of the families.
In nearby Oromocto, local MLA Jody Carr said no other tragedy comes even close for impact.
CTV Atlantic reports that the soldiers' bodies should be repatriated to Canada by Wednesday or Thursday.
Last day outside the wire
The slain soldiers were on their final convoy escort mission before they were set to return to the Kandahar base.
Lt.-Col. Rob Walker, commander of the Royal Canadian Regiment battle group, said the soldiers had been accompanying coalition convoys and were due to return to the base at Kandahar for a rest and to refit their vehicles after six weeks in the field.
The soldiers, from Hotel Company, had been travelling the same route Sunday in the desert wilds near Helmand province for the past couple of days.
The soldiers were killed early Sunday afternoon by an apparent improvised explosive device. The bomb detonated, striking their LAV-III armoured vehicle as they guarded a convoy about 75 kilometres west of Kandahar.
The incident was the single largest one-day death toll suffered by Canadian troops since the Afghanistan campaign began in 2002.
Two other soldiers were evacuated to the NATO medical facility in Kandahar for treatment after the attack. One of them had serious abdominal injuries and would likely be transferred to the U.S. hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, for treatment. Another soldier received minor injuries.
Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay called the deaths "a very serious reminder of the cost of freedom and the cost of these conflicts."
"This very much highlights exactly what it means to be at war and what it means to be protecting people in Afghanistan -- as we did in France and parts of Europe over 90 years ago," MacKay told CTV, referring to the Battle of Vimy Ridge, which began 90 years ago Monday.
"In the modern context, our soldiers are no less brave or determined in taking on a very dedicated foe in the Taliban."
In Afghanistan on Monday, troops took part in a sombre Vimy Ridge anniversary ceremony, reminded of the parallels between their mission and the First World War.
"We found our way among nations in 1917. Now we are finding our way on the international stage," said Col. Mike Cessford, deputy commander of Task Force Afghanistan. "We are doing good things in tough parts of the world.''
Workman, who attended the ceremony, described the mood among the troops.
"The tone was set by what happened," he said. "It's very difficult for these soldiers to deal with because for the last while there haven't been serious wounds or death among this particular battle group."
Canada had not suffered any combat deaths so far this year. The last two occurred in November 2006, when Chief Warrant Officer Bobby Girouard and Cpl. Albert Storm died in a suicide bombing attack outside Kandahar City.
With report from CTV Atlantic, CTV's Paul Workman and files from The Canadian Press
