St. Albert residents will honour Canada’s first tactical medical unit this Sunday by granting a group of soldiers free reign in the city.
The City of St. Albert has invited residents to come to St. Albert Place this Sunday July 30 at about 10 a.m. to see Mayor Cathy Heron grant members of 1 Field Ambulance Freedom of the City.
Freedom of the city is a tradition where a community allows troops to march through town with drums beating, colours flying, and bayonets fixed (i.e. openly armed), the Department of National Defence reports. It dates back to medieval times where settlements did not allow armies within their walls for fear of being ransacked — letting troops enter while armed was a sign of trust and respect.
This year is the 125th anniversary of 1 Field Ambulance, said spokesperson Maj. Kenneth Hiscock. Established in August 1898 as the Bearer Company of Halifax, 1 Field Ambulance was Canada’s first tactical medical unit, and has served in conflict and disaster zones around the world. The unit is currently based out of CFB Edmonton.
Heron said she was super excited to welcome the troops to St. Albert.
“St. Albert is very close to the base and lots of people that work on the base live in St. Albert,” she said.
“I’m really excited to welcome them and let them have free reign of our streets.”
Scaled-back ceremony
While freedom of the city events typically involve large numbers of troops on parade, Hiscock said this particular event would be a scaled-back affair with about 30 soldiers performing stationary drills, as most of 1 Field Ambulance was off fighting wildfires in B.C. and training Ukrainian soldiers in Europe.
Hiscock said Sunday’s ceremony will see troops form up in front of St. Albert Place. 1 Field Ambulance commander Lt.-Col. Joseph Robinson will enter the building to speak with Heron, who will grant the troops freedom of the city. Officials will replace the City of St. Albert flag with the 1 Field Ambulance one for 24 hours to mark this freedom. Guests will then have a chance to check out the unit’s vehicles and equipment in Millennium Park on the St. Anne Promenade.
St. Anne Street will be closed from Perron St. to St. Thomas St. from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on July 30 to accommodate this ceremony, City of St. Albert spokesperson Cory Sinclair said in an email. He encouraged drivers to plan alternative routes.
Hiscock said members of his unit were excited to receive this recognition, as many had never been through a freedom of the city event before. (1 Field Ambulance last received freedom of the city from Edmonton in 1998.) Many members live in St. Albert and train at the Sturgeon Community Hospital.
“It’s definitely a huge honour,” Hiscock said.
“Just having people come down and watch us do our ceremony would be one of the best gifts we could receive.”
With files from Jennifer Henderson
