Juno Beach Centre
Robin Rowland, CBC News Online | June 5, 2003

The Juno Beach Centre in Normandy stands close to the spot where Canadians landed during the D-Day assault on German-occupied France.

Architect's model of the Juno Beach Centre in Normandy Juno Beach Centre photo gallery

The centre's Web site says: "The Juno Beach Centre at Courseulles-sur-Mer in Normandy will provide recognition of Canada's military and civilian contributions during the Second World War. It will preserve for future generations the knowledge of the contributions of that generation of Canadians and honour the gifts of valour and freedom that were given by all Canadians who participated."

The opening of the museum on June 6, 2003, came after a seven-year effort to establish the first permanent memorial to Canada's effort in the Second World War.

More than $8 million was raised to pay for the planning, construction and staffing. The federal government put in over $3 million, and another $1 million came from each of Ontario, B.C., and the government of France. Contributions also came from the governments of Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, and Wal-Mart put in about $250,000. D-Day veterans raised much of the rest.

Alex Kowbel

It has been almost six decades since Alex Kowbel landed on the beaches of Normandy. The 80-year-old was one of the veterans who headed back for the unveiling of a memorial at the site.

"We tend to forget so this memorial will help people remember," Kowbel says.

Dr. Serge Durflinger, a historian at the Canadian War Museum says, "D-Day itself was piercing the crust of Hitler's Atlantic Wall. After Canada was a major player in doing that, I think the army gained a lot of confidence, a lot of maturity, and they had proven themselves in the test of combat."

Another veteran, Jan Devries of Toronto, says, "I've been over to France on a pilgrimage, two or three times as a matter of fact. And outside of the graveyards and a little plaque here and there, there is nothing people could learn about what Canada did during the war.

"Of course I will be sad when I go to the cemeteries and during the memorial service but happy that we've opened up a place where Canadians and the rest of the world can visit and come and see what Canada did during World War Two," Kowbel says.

The museum at the Juno Beach Centre includes a simulated approach to the D-Day beaches by landing craft, and displays on the theatres of operations and the events of the Second World War in Canada and overseas. It also includes explanations of military hardware and tactics such as how minesweeping works or how a convoy was organized. A special section is a "children's circuit" aimed at those eight to 13 years old.