Royal Canadian Mint unveils new commemorative coin

By John Boldrick

A large replica of the new Highway of Heroes commemorative coin sits on display in Quinte West municipal offices. The coin was revealed at a ceremony held on Monday afternoon. Photo by John Boldrick

The Royal Canadian mint unveiled its newest commemorative piece in honour of the Highway of Heroes on Monday at Quinte West municipal offices.

The new addition is a silver coin with a value of $10. It recognizes Canada’s military personal but also their families.

The idea for the coin came from Pete Fisher, a photographer for Northumberland Today newspaper, who has been on a campaign in hopes of making the coin a reality.

“When I first came up with the idea, we took a trip to the Mint in Ottawa on a family vacation and I put forth the idea,” he said.

Fisher’s idea was not originally accepted. Although officials from the Canadian Mint as well as consumers liked the idea, mint officials thought that it would be too hard to replicate on a coin. The rejection only made Fisher work harder to see his idea become reality.

“They [the mint] said ‘it was too difficult to capture’. I didn’t accept that. I’ve always said ‘If you want difficult, stand side by side with a solider’. That’s difficult,” he said.

The Highway of Heroes commemoration is just the latest in a long series of coins depicting the Canadian military. There have been 40 similarly themed-coined produced by the mint since 2004. The unveiling comes a little under a year since the release of the 2010 Canadian poppy quarter.

Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty was on hand for the ceremony and announced that $20 from each coin sold would be split between the Military Families Fund and the Afghanistan Repatriation Memorial. The announcement was met with overwhelming praise.

“The money raised goes to two of the most worthwhile causes,” said Rick Norlock, MP for Northumberland-Quinte West.

The Military Families Fund was founded by former Chief of Defense Staff Rick Hillier and has helped over 700 families since it’s creation in 2007. The fund’s goal is to assist families with expenses such as rehabilitation, education and urgent family necessities.

The coin itself features the engraving of citizens waving flags as fire trucks pass by. The coin will also feature the memorial cross, a symbol created in 1919 by King George V, which is given to the loved ones of those who have died in combat. It was designed by Major Carl Gauthier, who admitted to having some difficulty in coming up with the design.

“How does one depict something like the Highway of Heroes on a small coin?” he said. “ Here we have what is essentially a human memorial that comes together spontaneously every now and then.”

Canadian Mint engraver Stan Witten was very proud with how the coin turned out.

“It’s one of the nicest coins I’ve ever worked on. I hope you all enjoy it,” he said.

The design garnered very positive reviews from those in attendance as well as politicians.

“It’s excellent. It depicts more about the people on the bridges and what the family sees going down the highway,” said Quinte West Mayor John Williams.

The design was not the only thing to receive praise, as Flaherty shared his thoughts on the project as a whole.

“I think it’s a wonderful project to commemorate the sacrifices of the soldiers and of their families,” said Flaherty in an interview.

The coin retails for $69.95 and can be purchased from the Canadian Mint’s website.