PERTH ROAD, ONT. 鈥� The crunch of crisp autumn leaves is the only sound that punctuates the stillness of Reine Samson Dawe鈥檚 tranquil surroundings. The lakeside home she shares with her husband, retired Lt.-Col. Peter Dawe, sits on the shores of Buck Lake, near Kingston, Ont.
It鈥檚 where Capt. Matthew Dawe always dreamed his parents would retire. His then-fiancee鈥檚 grandparents had a home nearby.
鈥淪o she came regularly,鈥� said Samson Dawe. 鈥淎nd Matt came with her. And he absolutely loved the place.鈥�
But Dawe, who was the youngest of four boys, never saw the new family home.
The 27-year-old commander of 8 Platoon, C Company, 3 Princess Patricia鈥檚 Canadian Light Infantry Battalion, based in Edmonton, was killed in Afghanistan in 2007, just months after his parents moved in.
鈥淔or the first while I just swam and swam and swam, and I felt that I was close to him when I was under water for some reason,鈥� his mother said.
Samson Dawe is the 2019 Silver Cross Mother, an annual distinction conferred by the Royal Canadian Legion. At the National Remembrance day Ceremony in Ottawa on Nov. 11, Samson Dawe will place a wreath at the base of the National War Memorial on behalf of all mothers who鈥檝e lost children as a result of military service.
Killed in battle
Shortly before his deployment, Dawe ruptured his Achilles tendon 鈥� an injury severe enough it could have given him an 鈥渙ut.鈥� But he was adamant about healing quickly and joining his team. The doctor said it would take a year to recover. It took Dawe just four months.
Described as a great leader and larger than life, Dawe was said to be devastated when he had to identify and recover three platoon members killed by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan. Two weeks later, he was involved in what was described as 鈥渁n operation to neutralize the local bomb maker believed to be behind that deadly IED.鈥�
But while he was returning from that mission, his armoured vehicle was struck by a 500-pound bomb buried in the road. Dawe died instantly, along with five Canadian soldiers and an Afghan interpreter.
That was on July 4, 2007.
The same day, his son Lucas, turned two years old.
鈥淲e have a little bit of Matt here鈥�
Ask Samson Dawe, and she鈥檒l tell you they鈥檙e so similar, she often mistakenly calls her grandson by her son鈥檚 name.
鈥淗e stands like him. He walks like him. He has the same sense of humour.鈥�
鈥淚 would watch his hockey game and say 鈥榞o Matt!鈥� 鈥� I mean 鈥� 鈥榞o Lucas go!鈥欌��
She even did it during our interview.
鈥淢att -- Lucas -- loves fishing.鈥�
Describing one of those fishing trips on the lake, Peter Dawe鈥檚 voice starts to quiver when he talks about his grandson.
鈥淗e would be in the bow and I would be in the stern 鈥� and somehow, an hour later, we鈥檇 be on the same bench or his fishing line would surround my ear. It鈥檚 something like Matt would do.鈥�
A military tradition
Peter Dawe insists his wife carried him through his darkest days.
鈥淪he saved me and perhaps I did the same. But she was the stronger of the two.鈥�
The couple鈥檚 three surviving sons would say the same. Each of the boys, like their father, served in the military.
Peter Dawe Jr. is now head of the Canadian Special Operations Forces.
James is a retired captain after serving five years, including a tour in Bosnia.
And Phil, who also served overseas, including in Iraq, is a surgeon at Vancouver General Hospital, as well as the military鈥檚 medical director of trauma training.
鈥淚f I could save one military person鈥檚 life overseas, then my career would be worthwhile,鈥� he told CTV News from an interview in trauma bay inside VGH.
A mother soldiering on to continue her son鈥檚 mission
Despite the multiple cross-country moves, and the constant anxiety of seeing her sons deployed overseas, Samson Dawe says she never once thought of stopping them.
鈥淔reedom to me is the baseline to every success.鈥�
Hers, she says, will be measured by how she can make a difference through her volunteer work with Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, a not-for-profit organization trying to improve access to education for women and girls who were prevented from doing so under the Taliban.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 how we can continue the mission of the guys who went there.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what Matthew would have wanted.鈥�
