Four Northern Manitoba lakes are being named in honour of Manitoban soldiers who have been killed in action in Afghanistan.
Premier Greg Selinger made this announcement Nov. 4, in the buildup to Remembrance Day. The lakes, all located between 100 and 120 kilometres southeast of Thompson, are being named after Cpl. James Arnal, Sapper Sean Greenfield, Cpl. Michael Seggie, and Pte. Lane Watkins.
"These four individuals made the ultimate sacrifice for their province and their country," said Selinger. "It is my honour to be able to present the certificates bearing the names of our fallen soldiers to their loved ones." At the ceremony, families of each soldier were presented with a framed certificate containing the names of the soldiers.
Arnal, 25 at the time of his death in July 2008, was killed by a roadside bomb while he was on a foot patrol. Raised in Winnipeg, Arnal - who, on a leave from duty, once climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with a friend - was on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan and had already signed up for a third. He served with the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI), and was based in Shilo, east of Brandon.
Greenfield, who was killed in January 2009 when the armoured vehicle he was riding in struck an improvised explosive device outside of Kandahar City, was a military engineer on a mission to recover Taliban bomb-making materials. He was 25 at the time of the incident, and served with the 3rd Battalion of the Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group, based in Petawawa, Ontario.
Seggie, like Arnal a member of the PPCLI 2nd Battalion in Shilo, was killed in an attack by Taliban fighters in September 2008. Then 21 years old, Seggie was raised in Winnipeg, and his father and uncle had both earlier served in the same unit. He was killed along with two other members of his unit.
Watkins, originally from Clearwater - west of Morden near the American border - was one of six soldiers killed in an accident with a roadside bomb in July 2007, only a few weeks before he was scheduled to return home. Twenty years of age at the time, he had been stationed with the 3rd Battalion of the PPCLI, based in Edmonton.
In July, the mothers of Seggie and Watkins received time in the spotlight after they suggested that it was inappropriate for a Northern Manitoba lake to be named after NHL star Jonathan Toews in an expedited fashion, while fallen soldiers had to wait their turn.
A fifth fallen soldier, Trooper Corey Hayes, will also receive a lake named in his honour, but as his family lives in New Brunswick and was unable to attend the ceremony, his family will receive their certificate at a later date.
