COURSEULLES-SUR-MER, France, June 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As the 80th anniversary of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy approaches, The Juno Beach Centre (JBC), Canada’s Second World War museum and memorial in Normandy, France is preparing for the future of remembrance with an $11 million dollar capital campaign.
Led by the Juno Beach Centre Association (JBCA), the campaign will grow, preserve, and expand the reach of this Canadian landmark, helping it to continue to be a model institution in sustainability, and to preserve and steward land in the area.
French and European partners have already offered a combined 1,800,000 € to the campaign. The Ministère des Armées has donated 300,000 € while Région Normandie and REACT EU envisage 1,500,000 €. In Canada, the Arthur J.E. Child Foundation donated $750,000, the largest single gift from a private foundation or family in the JBC’s history.
Two years ago, Canadians helped save the Juno Beach Centre from a condominium development that would have done serious harm to Canada’s memorial presence in Normandy. Over 65,000 Canadians wrote letters to politicians in Ottawa and France with calls to protect the site. The Canadian and French governments and local authorities then secured an agreement to protect the Juno Beach Centre from the development and bring the land under the JBC’s protection. The result of this victory is the development of an initiative code-named “Project Concordia” and led by the JBC in partnership with the City of Courseulles-sur-Mer and various stakeholders.
According to Don Cooper, President of the Juno Beach Centre Association, “not only will it protect the Canadian D-Day battle site from urbanization but these objectives also align with the JBC’s sustainable development strategy. Canadians have seen a resolution to the condo dispute and now want to see the site preserved in a way that compliments the Juno Beach Centre and honours the Canadians who gave their lives to start the liberation of northwest Europe from this spot.”
Plans include building out the memorial park surrounding the Centre as a space for reflection and learning, restoring the surrounding dunes to preserve the precious ecosystems and biodiversity, and adding pedestrian pathways offering convenience, safety, and a sanctuary space for everyone.
The second major vision for the capital campaign is for a $6.3-million, 450-square-meter expansion of the physical facility. This will accommodate an expanded eco-responsible boutique and a new eco-responsible café, effectively increasing the footprint of the museum by 25 per cent and helping to meet growing attendance at the JBC.
“This is more than just a physical space,” says Cooper. “It is critical that after their visit families and visitors have time for reflection, dialogue, and integration of what they have witnessed. These spaces will not only provide an opportunity for that reflection and discussion, they will enable additional revenue generation and support the museum’s sustainability goals.”
The huge financial support from the Arthur J.E. Child Foundation has already enabled the renewal of the popular “Faces of Canada Today” gallery at the Juno Beach Centre. The gallery illustrates how modern Veterans continue to serve the same ideals of stability, prosperity and peace in a contemporary Canada and the world. It is dedicated to the memory of all Canadian Second World War Veterans who fought, without promise, reward or relief, in the hope of a better world.
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy, the Juno Beach Centre Association is calling on individual Canadians, corporations, businesses, organizations, and charitable foundations to join in the effort to raise the next $7.5 million needed to realize this vision. The campaign period is expected to run through to June 6, 2029, the 85th anniversary of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy five years from now.
Further details about this campaign can be found at https://www.junobeach.org/capital-campaign/.
QUOTES
“Mr. Child was an avid military historian and strategist, proud of his own military service, and loyal supporter and patron of Veterans and their contributions in building the legacy and future of Canada. He would have generously embraced the opportunity to help fund the commemoration of the accomplishments of Canadian soldiers on June 6, 1944 and throughout their remaining lives in continuing to build the nation of Canada.”
- Lorne Jacobson, Vice Chairman and Co-Founder TriWest Capital Partners and Lead Trustee, Arthur J.E. Child Foundation
“We are grateful to all of our financial partners for Faces of Canada Today and the JBC’s emerging capital campaign. The Arthur J.E. Child Foundation has been particularly generous and supportive of our vision. We hope their contribution inspires others to ensure that the museum founded by Second World War Veterans over 20 years ago will keep their legacies alive for generations.”
- Don Cooper, President, Juno Beach Centre Association
ABOUT THE JUNO BEACH CENTRE
The Juno Beach Centre was established in 2003 as a permanent memorial to all Canadians who were part of the Allied victory in the Second World War, and to preserve this legacy for future generations through education. The Centre in Normandy, France, pays homage to the nearly 45,000 Canadians who died during the War, including 5,500 during the Battle of Normandy and 381 on D-Day. Twenty years and more than 1.3 million visitors later, the Centre has been designated a site of national historic significance to Canada. It is owned and operated by the Juno Beach Centre Association, a registered charitable organization based in Burlington, ON, Canada. To learn more, please visit www.junobeach.org.
ABOUT ARTHUR J.E. CHILD AND THE ARTHUR J.E. CHILD FOUNDATION
Arthur J.E. Child was a self-made business leader and former majority shareholder and CEO of Burns Foods of Calgary, Alberta Canada, known both for his financial acumen and his personal philanthropy until his passing in 1996. He has been recognized for his impressive accomplishments in the fields of business, military education and public service – evidenced by Mr. Child receiving the Order of Canada, honorary doctorates from three distinguished Canadian universities and being designated honorary colonel in two branches of the Canadian Armed Forces.
The Arthur J. E. Child Foundation is a private foundation created by Arthur Child to steward his charitable endeavors and was permanently endowed with his estate upon his passing in 1996. It has since disbursed nearly $150 million in charitable grants, with virtually no administrative costs, to a wide variety of worthy recipients ranging from personal health care to medical research, from international poverty relief and refugee programs to domestic violence and addiction recovery programs, from military history to youth literacy and specialized education programs. The Trustees of the Foundation have been guided in their granting of awards by a personal familiarity with Arthur Child and his passion for excellence, personal improvement through discipline and hard work and compassion for those disadvantaged by circumstances beyond their control.
