This walkway and monument was dedicated on 4 June 2013 in honour of Captain Jonathan Sutherland Snyder, SMV.
Born in Penticton, British Columbia, on 20 December 1981, Jonathan graduated from Penticton Secondary School in 1999. From the age of 12, Jonathan was an army cadet and joined the Army in September 1999 as an Regular Officer Training Plan candidate. Graduating from the University of Victoria in 2003, Jonathan served in the 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry based in Edmonton. He had three overseas deployments, serving as a platoon commander in Afghanistan for eight months in 2006, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, for three months in 2007, and again in Afghanistan in 2008 as part of the mentoring program, training troops in the fledgling Afghan National Army.
Just days prior to his death, while on patrol in Kandahar with Canadian and Afghan soldiers, his team was attacked on three sides. Snyder displayed extraordinary courage under fire and managed to battle to safety, saving the lives of dozens of Afghan and Canadians. For his bravery and leadership under fire, he was awarded the Star of Military Valour, Canada’s second highest award. Three days later on 7 June 2008 while on a night patrol in Zhari District, Snyder slipped into an unmarked irrigation well and, due to the weight of his equipment, was unable to stay afloat and drowned.
