RECENT NEWS:
Op GRANITE II December Update
Publication Date: 08 Dec 2025We are making progress and the entire event is shaping up very nicely. Interest is growing across the country and we are expecting a good turnout. Thank you all for your continuing support.
For those of you needing accommodation, see the page Op GRANITE II Accommodation Suggestions (Update).
The latest on RV Parking is at: Op GRANITE II - RV Parking & Base Accommodation.
We are hoping to start online ticket sales within the next few weeks. Those whose email addresses we have will receive an email from Eventbrite. You will be able to pay for registration, the Memorial Dinner and the Farewell Lunch all in one place. Should your plans change, we will give you a refund less a service charge to cover the cost.
If your current email is not on our list, please click OpGRANITEII@cmea-agmc.ca and add your name, and the names and email addresses of everyone you know who has a connection to Chilliwack. Remember, this is not an exclusive Engineer event, and all are welcome. If we don't already know their names, we'll add them to our growing list of contacts and potential attendees. Our goal is to ensure that everyone who might be interested is informed about the event well in advance so they can begin planning.
If you have any comments or suggestions that will help us in our efforts, please click Op GRANITE II Suggestions and Comments
All Sappers Cenotaph - The Short Story
Nearly eighty years ago, on 14 July 1946, His Excellency Viscount Alexander of Tunis, then Governor General of Canada, accompanied by General Charles Foulkes, Chief of the General Staff and Major-General Bert Hoffmeister, General Officer Commanding Pacific Area, unveiled and dedicated the All Sappers Memorial in Chilliwack, British Columbia.
The history of this monument is unique and compelling. Conceived at the end of the Second World War by Lieutenant-Colonel Norman Coulson Mitchell, VC, MC, Commandant of Camp Chilliwack, the project—known as Operation GRANITE—was undertaken by sappers of the Royal Canadian Engineers. They quarried the massive stone locally, transported it by military rafts and vehicles, down the Harrison River, across the Fraser River and then by road on a surplus tank chassis to Camp Chilliwack. The sapper, using their own skilled carvers, and designers, created and erected the cenotaph.
In July 2026, on the weekend of 17–19 July, we will commemorate the 80th anniversary of this dedication through Operation GRANITE II. The event is being jointly organized by the Chilliwack Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, the Canadian Military Engineers Association, and the Retired Sappers Association with the endorsement of the Chief Military Engineer.
The event will include the rededication of the Cenotaph and the honouring of the sacrifices of Canadian Military Engineers in war and peace. Of particular importance will be the remembrance for those who were not part of the original 1946 inscriptions: the fallen of the Korean War, the Afghanistan War, and those who served during Canada’s peacekeeping operations.
This website aims to be the source of the most current information on Op GRANITE II. The menu will lead you to the schedule of events, the most recent news, as well as the history and background of the monument.
Op GRANITE II September 2025 Update
Over the past few weeks, much progress has been made. We have filled most our planning committee positions - project manager, secretary, treasurer, communications manager, history and heritage advisor, government relations manager, and ticket sales manager. All we need now is an accommodations manager, events manager and transportation manager.
Speaking of accommodations, and although not finalized, we will soon be in a position to offer accommodation options to travellers. To start, we have 40 RV spots at the Heritage Park. The sites only have 30- and 40-amp electrical hook-ups. There is no sewer of water, but the sani-dump is less than 200 meters away. We are entering into an agreement with the RCMP on the old Chilliwack base to offer student accommodation to guests with active security clearances and their partner or spouse. We may even offer tented accommodation for those wanting to relive the old days - but without the emersion heaters and port-a-potties! And of course, many of you will have friends and relatives in the area who may be able to share some accommodation. We are doing our best to secure discounts for commercial lodging. Our advice for now is to book fully refundable lodging until we have completed our search.
For the Meet & Greet, we are inviting as many food trucks as can make it to the Heritage Park. Weather depending, we will hold much of that gathering outside with that very familiar smell of Chilliwack's agricultural industries wafting through the evening air. We will have a sit-down dinner on Saturday. We are tossing around the ideas of how to feed one-thousand people as efficiently as possible. We will make it as pretty as we can, but no promises except that the food will be good.
We have also started planning additional events. For example, there will be an informal reunion of Combat Divers at the Jolly Miller Pub on Thursday, 16 July. All are welcome and other groups are encouraged to organize similar events. On Saturday, we hope to have a short Volksmarch in and around the old Rafting & Watermanship area. It has been converted into a Great Blue Heron Reserve and is well worth the visit. Efforts are also being made to offer a self-guided tour of the developments in Garrison Crossing, the old PMQ area. Sturgeon fishing has also been suggested. That is a once-in-a-life time opportunity, not to be missed. On Sunday, after the morning service at the Cenotaph, a Farewell Brunch will be served either at the Vedder Legion or the Heritage Park. There will be a remembrance gathering at the old Cultus Lake rafting area for early-rising Combat Divers before the Cenotaph Rededication Service. Since many guests will have travelled a long way to attend, we need more ideas for activities to make the trip worthwhile.
Ticket sales will start in early November. You will be able to pick and choose the events you want to attend, and we will offer meal options for Dinner. Payments can be made in part or in full. Details will follow.
To contact the Project Team, click here.
Operation GRANITE II: Chilliwack BC 17-19 July 2026
Operation GRANITE II will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the dedication of the All Sappers Cenotaph in Chilliwack, British Columbia. This monument honours the sacrifices of Canada’s Military Engineers as well as those of the British Commonwealth.
The monument was unveiled on 14 July 1946 by His Excellency, Viscount Alexander of Tunis, the Governor General of Canada. The monument was conceived and designed by Lieutenant-Colonel Coulson Norman Mitchell, VC, MC, Commandant of Camp Chilliwack, as the Second World War was coming to a close. The project called “Operation GRANITE” included the Royal Canadian Engineers' locally quarrying of the massive stone for the monument, its transport to Vedder Crossing using a military raft and vehicles, and the creation of the cenotaph itself at Camp Chilliwack.
The motto of the Canadian Military Engineers is UBIQUE (translation: “in all places”). This monument reflects the ubiquitous character of Military Engineers - both in their work and in their embracing of all sectors of Canadian society.
Operation GRANITE II is a joint undertaking of the Chilliwack–Vedder Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, the Canadian Military Engineers Association, and the Retired Sappers Association. The Canadian Military Engineers of the Canadian Armed Forces endorse this celebration and rededication.
Representatives from the Regular and Reserve Force units of the Canadian Forces and Cadets will be invited to share this heritage.
Canadian Forces Base Chilliwack was the Home of the Canadian Military Engineers from 1942 to 1998. The events surrounding the rededication will provide an opportunity for the reunion of members of the Canadian Military Engineer Family and their friends who share a common bond through their connection with Chilliwack. The local Royal Canadian Legion Branch will open a 40-year time capsule. We are expecting over 1,000 former military engineers, their families, and friends from across the country to attend the ceremony and to celebrate a homecoming.
The re-dedication of the Cenotaph will honour the sacrifices of Canadian Military Engineers in war and peace. Special emphasis will be placed on remembering those who were not included in the initial 1946 inscriptions: the fallen of the Korean War, the Afghanistan War, and those who served during our peace-keeping
operations. Groups such as youth, Indigenous peoples, and adjacent communities of the Lower Fraser Valley will be invited to participate. Special efforts will provide a valuable learning opportunity about Canada’s military history and heritage, both in times of war and in times of peace.
Visit HERE [https://heyzine.com/flip-book/cbe140701a.html] for a short FlipBook presentation of the very interesting story of All Sappers Memorial.
NEWS ITEM 4 MAY 2025:
CME BRANCH COUNCIL ENDORSES OPERATION GRANITE II AS A CME ACTIVITY
We are pleased to advise that CME endorsed the planned event and will provide support.
Operation GRANITE II, planned for July 2026 in Chilliwack, is a commemorative event being organized by the CMEA, the Retired Sappers Association, and the Royal Canadian Legion. It will mark the 80th Anniversary of the All Sappers Cenotaph in Chilliwack, BC, that is the principal CME and central to our history and heritage.
The event is scheduled for the weekend of July 17-19, 2026. It is intended to be a major reunion and celebration, likely the last significant gathering in what was the "Home of the Engineers" from 1942 to 1998. The format includes:
- Registration and a Meet & Greet on Friday
- A Rededication and a Service of Remembrance at the Cenotaph on Saturday, followed by a Gala Dinner
- Optional church and group memorial services on Sunday morning, concluding with a farewell brunch
- Historical displays, kit sales, and a videographer capturing personal interviews and stories throughout the event
The organizing committee aims to reconnect thousands of people who served in Chilliwack, honour their history, and pay homage to those who have passed. The event has received financial support from the CMEA to help launch the event.
Operation GRANITE II is a significant military heritage reunion and commemorative event centred on the Canadian Military Engineers' legacy in Chilliwack, planned for mid-July 2026.
Operation GRANITE II
The CMEA is promoting the work of the Retired Sappers Association and the Royal Canadian Legion in Chilliwack to recognize the 80th Anniversary and Rededication of All Sappers Park and Cenotaph in Chilliwack, BC on the weekend of 17-19 July 2026.
All Sappers Park is the principal Canadian Military Engineers memorial and is central to the history and heritage of the Canadian Military Engineers. The Retired Sappers Association has been a vital maintainer of this heritage, but its active membership is quickly diminishing. Their organization and support of events recognizing CME birthdays and reunions is disappearing.
An organizing committee is being established to celebrate the occasion. With the assistance of the Canadian Military Engineers Association and the support of the CME, they aim to conduct what will probably be the last major CME celebration in what was the “Home of the Engineers” from 1942 to 1998.
Retired Sappers, Sapper Apprentices, Combat Divers, Airborne Sappers, and active engineer units have held many popular and festive gatherings in the old camp over the past eight decades. The format for this proposed “Last Reunion” is simple. Events will centre on the Chilliwack Heritage Park and All Sappers Memorial Park. We will open with a Registration and a Meet & Greet on Friday. On Saturday, we will march to the Cenotaph from the old saluting dais for a Service of Remembrance. That evening, there will be a Gala Dinner. Optional church and group memorial services are planned for Sunday morning, followed by a farewell brunch. Historical displays will be featured throughout the event, and kit sales opportunities will be offered. A videographer will capture the event with many personal interviews and stories.
The recent upwelling of patriotism reminds us of the importance of our history and heritage. We aim to seize the opportunity for the thousands of people who served in Chilliwack to reconnect, to remember and to pay homage to those who are gone.
An organizing committee has already received positive responses from ADM Veterans Affairs and the Canadian War Museum for support and assistance. The CMEA has approved $25.0 K for start-up funding. The event will be promoted on this website and the CMEA website.