November 11th is a time to honour and remember the people who have served including one of our own here at Hamilton Village. Gary Leroy John Albert Burner had to re-start his basic training in 1957 when he re-enlisted in the military in Kingston, Ontario at 18 years old. He spent his military career doing various deployments and working with a variety of divisions. He was a sniper in Korea early on in his career for the Patricia’s, part of the Airborne Regiment in Edmonton, and acted as peacekeeper in the Congo (1960’s), Egypt (1970’s) and Cypress. In 1977, he moved with his family to Germany where he worked in the Refueling Department on the Lahr base. Gary was also a member of the Armed Forces Motorcycle Team and spent years touring with them in the late 1960’s.

He spent many days and nights in Alberta and Northern Canada as part of his military training. He spent the vast majority of his career as a member of the Black Watch Infantry and the Signal Corps. While stationed in Calgary he worked in Transportation and was often in Vernon, BC doing Cadet training. We thank you Gary for your service and for continuing to inspire by sharing your story with us all.