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39 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,D ecem ber 19,2019 insidehalton.com Canada's Largest Golf Show February 7-9, 2020 International Centre TICKETS ON SALE torontogolfshow.com • DEMO RANGE • LEADING INSTRUCTORS • GIVEAWAYS &MORE! PRESENTEDBY Book your Travel and Travel Insurance in store. Travel Merchandise and Cinelpex Holiday deals. (905) 845-9680 360 Dundas Street East, Oakville, ON, L6H 6Z9 www.caasco.com It all began 34 years ago with a young teen- age girl's desire to make a difference. Today, the story continues. When eight crew and 248 soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division based out of Fort Campbell, Ky., died in a plane crash near Gander, N.L., in 1985, Oakville's Janice Nik- kel (then Johnston) was moved to do some- thing to honour the lost lives. She wrote a letter to the Toronto Star stat- ing she would like to donate her babysitting money toward a memorial forest with trees for each person aboard the aircraft who hadfor each person aboard the aircraft who hadf died as the soldiers returned from a peace- keeping mission in the Sinai. One thing led to another, and in Septem- ber 1986, Nikkel found herself in Kentucky helping to plant 256 trees with the generous support of ReTree International and Sheri- dan Nurseries, "who graciously donated and shipped 256 sugar maple trees to Fort Camp- bell," where an acre of land had been set aside. "My heart was to show our American neighbours that we as Canadians truly care," recalled Nikkel, who has been invited back to the base for the dedication of new memorial trees on Dec. 12. "The trees matured beyond their capacity, roots entwined, and the forest had to be taken down. They have made benches and memori- al bowls from the fallen trees," she said. "We are so pleased that Sheridan Nurser- ies has come alongside to help make my trip there a reality and be part of this next stage of this memorial," Nikkel added. FORMER OAKVILLE RESIDENT DEDICATES NEW U.S. LIVING MEMORIAL SHE INSPIRED 34 YEARS AGO A 15-year-old Janice Johnston at Fort Campbell in Kentucky to plant trees as a living memorial to soldiers from the base who died in a plane crash on Canadian soil as they returned from a peacekeeping mission. Janice Nikkel photo NEWS