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http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060813/arndt_funeral_0600816/20060816?hub=Canada
Edmonton reservist honoured in funeral
Updated Wed. Aug. 16 2006 11:58 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Close to 1,000 people gathered at a Royal Canadian Legion west of Edmonton on Wednesday to say goodbye to Master Cpl. Raymond Arndt.
The Edmonton-based reservist with the Loyal Edmonton Regiment died in Afghanistan on Aug. 5 in a head-on collision with an Afghan transport truck.
"He was a very good soldier, very dedicated, very hard working. He loved to smile, loved to tell jokes," Lt.-Col. Hans Brink, Arndt's commanding officer, said of the soldier known for his quick smile and his tenacious resolve.
Some of those jokes had to do with Ardnt's club foot -- an obstacle he overcame to serve his country.
"Originally it was going to keep him out of the army, and he had to prove to the medical branch that he could march with us and do everything that a normal soldier could do," said Brink.
Arndt, 32, was originally from Peers, northeast of Edson.
Among the mourners were 125 soldiers who rode buses from Edmonton to Edson, about 190 kilometres west. Another 25 soldiers drove out.
They were joined at the funeral by a dozen RCMP officers in dress red serge.
Arndt was just days away from returning home from his six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan.
While his family and friends are left to grieve, the military continues to investigate the crash that killed him.
A military board of inquiry is looking into reports the Afghan truck driver deliberately rammed into Arndt's G-wagon.
"Like any accident, it's under investigation, and that's basically where it stands right now," said Brink.
The G-Wagon jeep Arndt was travelling in was the lead vehicle in a convoy returning to Kandahar. Three other Loyal Edmonton reservists were injured in the crash.
Cpl. Ashley Van Leeuwen of St. Paul was severely injured in the crash and was flown to a military hospital Germany.
Cpl. Jared Gagnon of Sherwood Park was also flown to hospital in Germany, while Pte. Adam Keen of Edmonton suffered minor injuries and returned to duty.
The Loyal Edmonton Regiment had 27 members in Afghanistan, including Arndt and the three injured men.
They were part of a platoon that escorts convoys to different locations, such as supply bases.
Earlier Wednesday, there were emotional goodbyes at Canadian Forces Base Trenton as 139 soldiers boarded planes for Afghanistan.
The troops, mostly based in CFB Petawawa near Ottawa, are replacing western Canadian regiments finishing up a six-month tour of duty.
Meanwhile, dozens of anxious relatives in Winnipeg welcomed home 100 soldiers from Afghanistan on Wednesday. The soldiers then boarded buses bound for CFB Shilo.
The soldiers are part of about 2,000 returning troops, mainly from Manitoba and Alberta, who have begun arriving in waves from Afghanistan over the past several weeks.
WIth a report by CTV Edmonton's Joel Gotlieb in Edson, Alta.
Edmonton reservist honoured in funeral
Updated Wed. Aug. 16 2006 11:58 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Close to 1,000 people gathered at a Royal Canadian Legion west of Edmonton on Wednesday to say goodbye to Master Cpl. Raymond Arndt.
The Edmonton-based reservist with the Loyal Edmonton Regiment died in Afghanistan on Aug. 5 in a head-on collision with an Afghan transport truck.
"He was a very good soldier, very dedicated, very hard working. He loved to smile, loved to tell jokes," Lt.-Col. Hans Brink, Arndt's commanding officer, said of the soldier known for his quick smile and his tenacious resolve.
Some of those jokes had to do with Ardnt's club foot -- an obstacle he overcame to serve his country.
"Originally it was going to keep him out of the army, and he had to prove to the medical branch that he could march with us and do everything that a normal soldier could do," said Brink.
Arndt, 32, was originally from Peers, northeast of Edson.
Among the mourners were 125 soldiers who rode buses from Edmonton to Edson, about 190 kilometres west. Another 25 soldiers drove out.
They were joined at the funeral by a dozen RCMP officers in dress red serge.
Arndt was just days away from returning home from his six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan.
While his family and friends are left to grieve, the military continues to investigate the crash that killed him.
A military board of inquiry is looking into reports the Afghan truck driver deliberately rammed into Arndt's G-wagon.
"Like any accident, it's under investigation, and that's basically where it stands right now," said Brink.
The G-Wagon jeep Arndt was travelling in was the lead vehicle in a convoy returning to Kandahar. Three other Loyal Edmonton reservists were injured in the crash.
Cpl. Ashley Van Leeuwen of St. Paul was severely injured in the crash and was flown to a military hospital Germany.
Cpl. Jared Gagnon of Sherwood Park was also flown to hospital in Germany, while Pte. Adam Keen of Edmonton suffered minor injuries and returned to duty.
The Loyal Edmonton Regiment had 27 members in Afghanistan, including Arndt and the three injured men.
They were part of a platoon that escorts convoys to different locations, such as supply bases.
Earlier Wednesday, there were emotional goodbyes at Canadian Forces Base Trenton as 139 soldiers boarded planes for Afghanistan.
The troops, mostly based in CFB Petawawa near Ottawa, are replacing western Canadian regiments finishing up a six-month tour of duty.
Meanwhile, dozens of anxious relatives in Winnipeg welcomed home 100 soldiers from Afghanistan on Wednesday. The soldiers then boarded buses bound for CFB Shilo.
The soldiers are part of about 2,000 returning troops, mainly from Manitoba and Alberta, who have begun arriving in waves from Afghanistan over the past several weeks.
WIth a report by CTV Edmonton's Joel Gotlieb in Edson, Alta.
