On Remembrance Day, Richmond parents Gary and Jill Berg will face the cenotaph at city hall, listening with heavy hearts to the guns fired by cadets.

Their minds will be a world away, in Afghanistan, where their son Darren was deployed one month ago.

Darren, a 19-year-old Hugh Boyd Secondary graduate, is doing what he's long wanted to do—serve his country in the military. His parents just want to see him return home safely.

"You can agree or disagree on what they're doing over there, but the main thing for us is to get him back," said Gary.

Darren is an infantry soldier, working in the battle force protection group, securing areas for convoys in the country's southern province of Kandahar.

There are about 2,800 Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, most based in Kandahar. Since Canada's mission in Afghanistan began in 2002, 133 Canadian soldiers have been killed.

Darren's tour could last anywhere from six months to almost a year, and it's something he's been working toward all his life.

As a boy, Darren took an interest in Air Cadets, working toward his first goal of becoming an air force pilot. His dad spent so much time in the airfield that he earned a pilot's licence of his own.

Darren soon realized that landing his dream job as a fighter pilot may not come true, so he set his sights on the army. He registered for the Canadian Forces at age 16, the soonest he could. Gary remembers driving his son down to the recruiting centre in downtown Vancouver.

"He knew exactly where to go and who to talk to, and it was just a matter of me driving him down there. It's just something he has a passion for."

He completed basic military training at the New Westminster regiment and moved to Edmonton in February for further training before his deployment Thanksgiving weekend.

"I've never seen him so focused on anything as I have with the military," said mom Jill. "He was always there polishing those boots until you could almost see yourself in them. He's been really focused and really devoted. He's a good soldier."

Darren calls his parents from Kandahar up to three times per week—he's allowed 32 long distance minutes per week—sends e-mails, and they've even managed to connect via webcam.

He told them about his first impressions of the country, that it's the perfect climate for an all-inclusive resort, if there was water. He told them of travelling into town and visiting the market.

But then he went to work—and saw a whole different landscape.

"He's had some scary moments, but he's there fulfilling his dream. It's something he's wanted to do since he was a kid," said Jill.

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Canada's mission in Afghanistan

-2,800 Canadian soldiers, based mostly in Kandahar province

-The military's focus is providing security in the war-torn country and to assist the Afghan National Army and police

-Soldiers are also providing humanitarian aid and boosting security at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border

-Canada's mission began soon after the attacks on the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001

-Canada has pledged to end its combat mission in 2011

-Since the mission began, 133 Canadian soldiers have been killed

-Afghanistan is a poor country, ranking 174th out of 178 countries on the United Nations' Human Development Index

-Although income of Afghans has gone up since 2002, nearly seven million people don't have enough food to meet minimum daily needs

-Opium trade was worth more than $3 billion in 2007—about one-third of the country's gross domestic product