mets of soldiers, representing our peacekeeping roles for the Unit- ed Nations. The story ends in Afghanistan with natural greens and browns, representing modern times. At the core of his desire to create this permanent symbol of remem- brance, is Red’s deep passion for listening to and recording the stories of Veterans from Melbourne and the surrounding county: “I speak to Veterans from all over and they all say the same thing. ‘We came home and lived our lives. Those who died didn’t. They need to be remembered.’ I hope this mural helps us do that and by remembering, we’ll use diplomacy to prevent these stories from happening again.” Inside the Legion, Red has six frames containing pictures, medals, and letters that document 11 Melbourne sons who went to war and didn’t come home. Seven of those 11 men volunteered for WWI, representing approximately 3% of the village’s population then. While Red has the names of the seven men, the regiments they belonged and when they died, he only has pictures of two: William (Billy) Jesse Newman who died on October 1, 1918, at the Battle of Canal du Nord, France, and James Warren Kellestine who died on the first day of the battle for Vimy Ridge, April 9, 1917. The faces of both men were incorporated into the mural along with four other Melbourne men who enlisted and died during WWII: Lorne Evans, Jack Brodie, John Dewar, and Warren Kellestine. Red joined the Melbourne Legion 45 years ago. While he didn't have his own military career, Red is proud to be part of the Melbourne branch and the community in which he grew up, and he has worked hard to ensure that the Melbourne Veterans are not forgotten. What about the stories that come after Afghanistan and of Cana- da’s future military impact? Well, that’s another story.
A Story in Brush Strokes As you drive north on Melbourne Road, the midday sun glints on metal in the distance. Images of soldiers, planes, and tanks ripple to life as you draw near. A powerful story painted in black-and-white camouflage leaps out. Your eyes naturally track the progression as black-and-white gives way to splashes of blue and muted green. You are looking at a 12x60-foot mural painted on the side of the Melbourne Legion. The impressive scenes commemorate the sac- rifices of the men and women who served in World War I and II, Canada’s role in Korea, and our role as part of the NATO Interna - tional Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. When Red Noble became President of the Melbourne Legion in 2022, he wanted to create a permanent and public monument that would tell the story of these brave warriors. A mural seemed the perfect way to emblazon this legacy. Red commissioned Olha Kovalenko, a Ukrainian artist offering art lessons to children and adults in Strathroy, to do the work. “I saw a piece Olha painted of a bombed cityscape with a child looking for its parents,” says Red. “She has an impressive way of telling a story with her paintbrush.” Olha and Red pieced together the important elements of the story Red wanted to tell, using pictures projected onto the outside wall of the Legion. “It was important to start the mural with the Vimy Ridge memorial, not only because it was such a great accomplishment for Canadian troops, but because one of Melbourne’s own boys died taking the ridge,” Red explains. The mural moves effortlessly from Vimy Ridge and the trenches of WWI into the air battles and tanks of WWII. The monochromatic black-and-white motif depicts the desolation of war. As the story progresses, splashes of blue appear in the sky and on the hel-
WWII Melbourne men lost
Afghanistan
Korea
Melbourne Legion Mural
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