Royal Canadian Mint raises funds with Highway of Heroes coin

The Royal Canadian Mint has announced that it has raised $200,000 for the Afghanistan Repatriation Memorial Fund (AMRF) and the Military Families (MFF) Fund through sales of its Highway of Heroes coin. The donations were presented at a special ceremony at the Afghanistan Repatriation Memorial, with $100,000 going to each charity.

The Highway of Heroes commemorative silver coin was unveiled in Trenton on October 31, 2011. The coin featured an overpass along the Highway of Heroes as viewed from the perspective of the mourning family as they accompany their lost loved one along the route, as well as a Memorial Cross, commissioned after the First World War by King George V for presentation to the loved ones of fallen soldiers. The coin was available for sale until December 31, 2012 and $20.00 from the sale of each coin was to be shared between the Afghanistan Repatriation Memorial Fund and the Military Families Fund. 

Ian E Bennett, president and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint, said: 'The Royal Canadian Mint has a proud tradition of issuing coins that honour the brave men and women who fought for Canada and at times gave their lives in defending our freedom. The Highway of Heroes silver commemorative coin captured the profound gratitude of Canadians to our soldiers who served and fell in Afghanistan, and the Mint expresses our thanks to them, as well as to all our active Canadian Armed Forces personnel and their families.'

For more on the coin, visit the Royal Canadian Mint website.

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