“Today we mourn as a nation,” remarked MPP Randy Hillier of Lanark, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington, “as we hear of the loss of our last surviving First World War veteran, John Babcock.”
Born and raised on the family farm in Frontenac County, Babcock joined the volunteer 146th Canadian Expeditionary Force in Sydenham in 1916, in response to the call of a king and a burgeoning nation: the call of duty. From all across rural Ontario they came; young men and women like John Babcock rising to the occasion, creating an enduring legacy of service that has been woven into the fabric of our rural heritage and culture.
“With the passing of John Babcock, Canadians share in the loss of the last man standing from WW 1 who defined a generation of Canadian men and women, with their great personal sacrifices, and marked Canada’s emergence onto the world stage with valour, dignity and honour,” added Hillier. “It is with sincere humility that I offer the condolences and gratitude of the people of Lanark, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington to the Babcock family, and to descendents of all the young men and women, who in the dawning years of the twentieth century, journeyed across the ocean in service to Canada and the cause of freedom, justice, and democracy.”
