The Royal Canadian Legion encouraged spiritual centres to take part in Bells of Peace at sunset.

When people in Europe learned of the Armistice on November 11, 1918, many celebrated by rushing to churches to ring bells that had been silenced during the war.

News of the end of the fighting in the First World War travelled through Europe, in part, by the eruption of church bells that people were ringing in celebration.

A century later, bells in communities across Canada will chime 100 times as the sun slips under the horizon on Sunday, November 11 to mark each year since the Armistice.

The Royal Canadian Legion and Veterans Affairs Canada have been encouraging legions, churches, spiritual centres, and community centres to take part in the initiative, called “Bells of Peace” . They asked Canadian to ring or play bells at five-second intervals starting at sunset on Sunday, November 11.

There are similar programs in the U.K., the US., and Australia.

Special thanks to John and Margaret Calvert for ringing our bell at Christ Church, Bloomfield.  Some people were in the parking lot listening to the ringing of the bell, and the sound carried to all the homes in the surrounding area.  What a wonderful way to end Armistice Day!