Calgarians remember heroes at Field of Crosses

Remembrance Day ceremonies will be held throughout the city on Saturday, following a day of honouring the fallen on Friday.

Calgary's Field of Crosses held early tributes to southern Alberta heroes during two events: one in the morning and one in the evening.

The sunrise ceremony focused on Women of War, an often under-appreciated segment of those who served.

An early morning gathering honed in on people like Michelle Lang, a Calgary Herald journalist who lost her life while on assignment in Afghanistan.

She's not alone.

"It's important for me to recognize one woman in particular today," Major (Ret.) Kent Griffiths said.

"Captain Nichola Goddard was instrumental in changing the way the Canadian Armed Forces views its own members."

Goddard is known for breaking down gender barriers.

She, too, was killed on the Afghan front lines and is now one of the 3,620 honoured with a cross along Memorial Drive.

"It's significant to remember the diversity of people who served," Mayor Jyoti Gondek told CTV News.

"And it's important to think about those who gave their lives so we could live in a city like this and enjoy democracy and our freedoms."

Friday night's sunset ceremony will mark the Night of Lights, an evening where candles are lit at the base of every cross.

They'll burn from sunset until sunrise Saturday to symbolize a beacon of hope and peace.

"There should be an intolerance towards war," Griffiths said.

"There's got to be a better way to solve conflicts."