The Royal Canadian Legion in Kamloops and 886 Wing (Overlander) Royal Canadian Air Force Association will be holding a ceremony at 11 am this Thursday at the CF-5 memorial at Kamloops Airport.

Legion President Craig Thomson says it is meant to honour Capt. Jennifer Casey, while also showing support for the recovery of Capt. Richard MacDougall and the Snowbirds.

“Yes, there will be a sombre side of things but this is not just to honour the fallen. It’s to honour all of the squadron. It will be sombre, but it will be a little bit different than Remembrance Day,” he told NL News.

He says the ceremony will include the laying of wreaths,  ‘The Last Post’ and a recitation of the Act of Remembrance. Thomson adds it is devastating whenever a serving member of Armed Forces dies, more so in this case, because it happened in Kamloops.

“That’s one of the reasons why we’re doing this tribute,” he added. “We just felt that we needed to do this, not only for Captain Casey, but for the rest of the Snowbirds as well, just to show them that this community cares for them.”

Among the many speakers will be Dr. Wendy McKenzie, the president of 886 (Overlander) Wing, Kamloops Mayor Ken Christian, MP Cathy McLeod, and MLA’s Peter Milobar and Todd Stone.

The ceremony is open to the public. However, people are being asked to adhere to all physical distancing measures – including standing at a safe distance and wearing masks, if they choose to.