Senator Yonah Martin

The co-ordinates 35°7'39"N 129°5'50"E denote the exact latitude and longitude of the United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Busan, Republic of Korea (ROK), which is more commonly known as South Korea. What many people don't know about this location (or perhaps about the Korean War in general) is that about 500 of the 516 Canadian war dead lie in this cemetery.

   Veterans of this mid-20th Century conflict are doing all that they can to never let the public's attention for what is often termed "The Forgotten War" fade. On Remembrance Day, Canada joined Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States (who have active-duty personnel stationed in Korea) by sending a seven-person delegation to the UN Memorial Cemetery in the ROK to commemorate the many sacrifices made on the battlefield some 60 years ago.

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OTTAWA, ONTARIO — Senator Yonah Martin’s appreciation of Canadian war veterans goes beyond patriotism. For her, it’s personal.

Martin, a teacher from B.C. who was appointed to the red chamber two years ago at the age of 44, was born in Korea. If not for the Canadian soldiers who risked their lives there during the Korean War, her story would have been very different.

“I would not be standing here today,” she said.

So when the opportunity came up for her to speak Sunday at an event in Ottawa called “Take a Veteran to Dinner Night,” she said it was a perfect time for her to express her “deep gratitude” to Canadian veterans.

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WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwire - Aug. 30, 2011) - On behalf of the Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Veterans Affairs, the Honourable Yonah Martin, Senator for British Columbia, today joined dignitaries from Canada, the United States and the Republic of Korea in honouring Canada's Veterans of the Korean War. Senator Martin spoke to Veterans and their families from different countries at a banquet in Winnipeg. The banquet is one of a series of activities comprising "The Last Hurrah," the final large gathering planned by the Korea Veterans Association of Canada.

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On August 6^th 2011, Blue Mountain Park in Coquitlam, BC, was bustling with the sounds and smells of Korea for the 10^th annual Korean Heritage Day Festival. This one day event showcased traditional Korean heritage through a variety of cultural performances, food, and a gathering of the Korean- Canadian society.

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OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - July 24, 2011) - Senator Yonah Martin, on behalf of the Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Veterans Affairs, was joined by the Honourable Sung Choon Park, Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs for the Republic of Korea, to mark the 58^th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice and the service and sacrifice of Veterans of the Korean War. A brief ceremony was held today at the Monument to Canadian Fallen followed by a wreath-laying ceremony at the National War Memorial.

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OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 25, 2011) - The Honourable Steven Blaney, Minister of Veterans Affairs, laid a wreath today at the Monument to the Canadian Fallen paying tribute to Korean War Veterans. Senator Yonah Martin, Member of Parliament Barry Devolin, the Honourable Kyug Ryul An, Chairman of the Canada-Korea Interparliamentary Group and Mr. Bill Black, President of the National Capital Unit of the Korea Veterans Association of Canada also laid wreaths.

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COQUITLAM, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Jan. 15, 2011) - The Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, John Baird, and British Columbia Senator Yonah Martin held a roundtable earlier today with Korean-Canadian small business owners and working families in Coquitlam to discuss ways to create jobs and economic growth as Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Government plans for the next phase of Canada's Economic Action Plan.

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