The Swift Current Legion has never forgotten.

For many years on the front line in remembering and honouring the veterans that have sacrificed for their country, the Swift Current Branch #56 has been instrumental in maintaining the Field of Honour; a subsection of Mount Pleasant Cemetery dedicated to military veterans.

Now, they've partnered with the Last Post Fund (LPF), an initiative that finds unmarked, or temporarily marked, veterans' graves and provides them with a permanent military-style stone memorial.

The project began in 2018 when Michael Newell, Swift Current Parks Manager began sending submissions to the Last Post Fund after entering his new role with the city, having previously worked with the organization in Ontario.

Glenn Miller, a volunteer for the LPF, was on hand last Friday to present the roughly 30 new stones that were most recently replaced, and to discuss the mission of his organization.

"It’s a privilege for myself as a member of the Alberta branch, and on behalf of all Last Post Fund members, to conduct this simple act of Remembrance. We want to give our thanks, in a visible and permanent way, to those who served our country.”

According to Jim Pratt with the Swift Current Legion, around a half dozen were replaced last year, with between 30 to 35 joining those numbers this year.

Previous to the stone markers, a number of volunteers had been maintaining the Field of Honour and constructing wooden crosses to mark the veterans' burials, a tradition that Pratt says will continue.

"We just did a rough count, and I think we have 35 or 40 wooden crosses left here, and until such time as they are all replaced, as legion members we will certainly be maintaining the crosses to the place does look as it should."

As Miller explained, the LPF relies on volunteer researchers to find unmarked or temporarily marked graves across the country. To that end launching the Lost Veterans Initiative in February of this year in order to recruit additional local volunteers. For Miller, who is passionate about history and honouring the service of those who came before, the feeling of reward for finding a previously unhonoured gravesite is worth the hard work and effort; going as far as issuing a challenge to Canadians to find 50 unmarked graves between Mother's Day and Father's Day.

"I would like to have our office have 50 potential cases identified by Father's Day Weekend. And there are thousands of unmarked graves across Canada. No one really knows. We have a planning figure, but our local research in the last couple of days is making that questionable. Maybe this can be an annual event until there are no more unmarked graves."

Interested volunteers or anyone who is aware of a veteran lying in an unmarked grave for more than five years can contact the LPF National Office at 1-800-465-7113.