232696
231186

Vernon  

Big honour for Crerar

The man behind the popular Okanagan Military Tattoo has received a national honour.

Norm Crerar will be awarded the Meritorious Service Medal from Governor General Julie Payette.

Crerar was nominated earlier this year for the honour and says he's humbled.

He said the tattoo, which is in its fifth year, is a way to honour the men and woman of all ages in uniform.

“It's a platform for the military, our British Columbia Dragoons, the cadet program and our veterans. Those are three major parts of every show we do,” said Crerar. “Plus we try to get a big youth component into the show. It's a multi-faceted show and we try to reach out to everybody.”

The idea for the tattoo came after a performance with the Kalamalka Highlanders during BC Lions halftime show in 2012 in BC Place.

“They do a tribute to the veterans during the last game of the season,” said Crerar. “They have 400 musicians out on the floor.”

The tribute included several cadet bands.

“We marched down the length of the field, played Amazing Grace and marched back. At the end of it, I said to our president at the time 'This must be what a tattoo feels like' and that was it,” said Crerar.

He contacted his friend Derek Hall, who is also a monarchist and historian, and after a lot of hard work, the Okanagan Military Tattoo was born.



More Vernon News



229228