Remembrance Day Supplement (4.3 MB) - Senior Connector
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November 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 • Page 1<br />
<strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> Remembers<br />
By Mike Keetch<br />
Captain Joe Jasper joined<br />
the Military in 1989 and<br />
became a member of the<br />
Princess Patricia’s Canadian<br />
Light Infantry (PPCLI).<br />
His Career started off as<br />
you would expect in a peace<br />
ime military. In 1993 things<br />
tarted to change as he was<br />
ent to Croatia to serve<br />
term of duty. When he<br />
eturned, things got back<br />
o normal, until 2002 when<br />
e was sent to Afghanistan<br />
with the first contingent<br />
f Canadian Troops. Speifically<br />
with “A” Company<br />
Para) of the Third Batalion<br />
PPCLI. Their first<br />
onth on the ground was<br />
pent living in slit trenches.<br />
This was the rainy season<br />
nd a lot of the time, the<br />
renches were deep in water.<br />
espite this, the troops<br />
pent 24 hours a day, seven<br />
ays a week manning the<br />
ine. The men were heard to<br />
ay that it reminded them<br />
f what it must have been<br />
ike in world war one. To<br />
dd to the misery, daytime<br />
emperatures were around<br />
Captain Joe Jasper<br />
Afghanistan<br />
Then and Now<br />
Photo By Mike Keetch<br />
40 degrees and at night the<br />
temperature would drop to<br />
about 20 degrees. This was<br />
quite cold after sweltering in<br />
the 40 degree heat all day.<br />
After that first month,<br />
they began the war in earnest!<br />
During his tour of duty,<br />
Captain Jasper took part in<br />
Operation Apollo with Task<br />
Force Rakkasan. This was<br />
part of Canada’s contribution<br />
to the Global War on<br />
Terror. They became the<br />
first ground combat troops<br />
deployed against a declared<br />
enemy since Korea. At this<br />
time the Canadians were<br />
working with the 101 st Airborne<br />
Division and the<br />
187 th Regimental Combat<br />
Team. Together they staged<br />
operations from Kandahar<br />
to Kabul, fighting in the<br />
mountains.<br />
At this time, the Canadian<br />
troops were “warfighting”<br />
as opposed to the current<br />
mandate of rebuilding as the<br />
main focus.<br />
Within Operation<br />
Apollo were several smaller<br />
operations. Operation Ana-<br />
Photo By Captain Joe Jasper<br />
Canadian Troops unload at the Landing Zone for Operation TORII<br />
conda was the last big battle<br />
fought at the time and<br />
involved Canadian snipers<br />
engaging in the worldest<br />
longest shot at over 2400<br />
metres.<br />
Operation Harpoon was<br />
an air assault to the top of a<br />
mountain to clear it of Taliban<br />
and insurgents. This<br />
was a four-day operation<br />
and was the highest (9000<br />
feet) land battle ever fought<br />
by the American Forces.<br />
Operation TORII was an<br />
operation searching caves in<br />
the Tora Bora mountains.<br />
This was a traditional place<br />
for the insurgents to hide<br />
as they have been fighting<br />
in these mountains forever.<br />
The surreal effect of this<br />
operation was that Captain<br />
Jasper said “the area looked<br />
like Banff ”. The mission<br />
statement for this operation<br />
was to “gather intelligence<br />
and deny al Qaeda and<br />
the Taliban use of the complex.<br />
Operation Cherokee<br />
Sky was an ambush....<br />
See Afghanistan on <strong>Remembrance</strong><br />
<strong>Day</strong> insert page 6<br />
REME<strong>MB</strong>RANCE DAY<br />
Ceremonies & Parade<br />
November 11<br />
10:45am The parade will assemble at the back of Heritage<br />
House in Riverside Park<br />
10:45am Mounting of the Guard of Honor<br />
Services will be conducted by: The Reverend Canon Jack<br />
Phelps and The Reverend Gary Paterson.<br />
10:58am “O Canada”<br />
10:59am The Last Post<br />
11:00am Two Minute Silence<br />
11:02am Lament<br />
11:04am Fly Past by 419 Squadron (Cold Lake, AB)<br />
11:05am Reveille “Act Of <strong>Remembrance</strong>”<br />
11:06am Prayers<br />
11:40am The parade will move out onto Lorne Street, proceed<br />
West on Lorne Street under 1st Ave. underpass, West<br />
on West Victoria around the traffic island, then East on Victoria<br />
Street past saluting base in front of City Hall, continuing<br />
East on Victoria Street to dispersal area in the 400 block<br />
of Victoria Street. The youth groups turn right off Victoria,<br />
south on 4th Ave. to St. Paul St., left on St Paul for dispersal<br />
and continue into the United Church Hall for refreshments.<br />
After the parade, festivities for Veterans and parade participants<br />
will be available at the following locations:<br />
• Royal Canadian Legion Branch 52 – 425 Lansdowne St.<br />
• Anavets Unit 290 – 444 Tranquille Rd.<br />
• Rocky Mountain Rangers Canteen<br />
• Moose Lodge – 406 Fortune St.<br />
• Eagles Hall – 1805 Tranquille Rd.<br />
The Poppy Campaign Office is<br />
located at 260 ~ Third Ave. and<br />
is open 10 ~ 4 Monday to Friday.<br />
For more information<br />
please call 374-0623<br />
City of<br />
Kamloops<br />
Thank You<br />
Heartfelt Thanks to All Veterans<br />
We Will Remember Them<br />
Mayor Terry Lake<br />
Councillor John De Cicco<br />
Councillor Jim Harker<br />
Councillor Tina Lange<br />
Councillor Joe Leong<br />
Councillor Peter Milobar<br />
Councillor John O’Fee<br />
Councillor Arjun Singh<br />
Councillor Patricia Wallace<br />
www.kamloops.ca<br />
KAM06_DDAY<br />
Community Concerned,<br />
Community Involved<br />
Thank You Veterans!<br />
We will not forget your<br />
courage or your sacrifice...<br />
coo02_rem<br />
WAL★MART<br />
We sell for less!<br />
Thank you veterans!<br />
Lest we forget ...<br />
100-1055 Hillside Drive<br />
Kamloops<br />
374-1591<br />
wal07_rem
Page 2 • <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com<br />
November 2006<br />
We shall find peace. We shall hear angels. We shall see the<br />
sky sparkling with diamonds.<br />
Anton Chekov<br />
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www.smithchevolds.com • Mon-Fri 8am-7pm, Sat. 8am-6pm<br />
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ats01_rem<br />
<br />
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<br />
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<br />
<br />
smi01_rem<br />
Mynarski continued from page 1<br />
Gunner.<br />
The crew became close<br />
comrades over the first 12<br />
operations they flew together<br />
leading up to the fateful<br />
night of June 12, 1944.<br />
Mynarski had just been promoted<br />
to Pilot Officer the<br />
day before and he and his<br />
close friend Flight Lieutenant<br />
Pat Brophy were lounging<br />
on the grass discussing<br />
the fact that this was<br />
their 13 th operational flight<br />
and they would be over the<br />
target on Friday the 13 th .<br />
Mynarski reached into the<br />
grass and pulled up a four<br />
leaf clover. He gave it to<br />
Brophy and said “you keep<br />
it”. Brophy put it in his<br />
leather flying helmet. What<br />
follows is the account of<br />
that flight over France on<br />
June 12/13, 1944.<br />
The citation as it<br />
appeared in the London<br />
Gazette on 11 October 1946<br />
reads as follows:<br />
“Pilot Officer Mynarski<br />
was the mid-upper gunner of<br />
a Lancaster aircraft, detailed<br />
to attack a target at Cambrai<br />
in France, on the night of<br />
12 th June 1944. The aircraft<br />
was attacked from below and<br />
astern by an enemy fighter<br />
and ultimately came down in<br />
flames<br />
As an immediate result of<br />
the attack, both port engines<br />
failed. Fire broke out between<br />
the mid-upper turret and the<br />
rear turret, as well as in the<br />
port wing. The flames soon<br />
became fierce and the captain<br />
ordered the crew to abandon<br />
the aircraft.<br />
Pilot Officer Mynarski left<br />
his turret and went toward<br />
the escape hatch. He then saw<br />
that the rear gunner was still<br />
in his turret and apparently<br />
unable to leave it. The turret<br />
was, in fact, immovable,<br />
since the hydraulic gear had<br />
been put out of action when<br />
the port engines failed, and the<br />
755 Tranquille Road<br />
376-1311<br />
www.kamloopseagles3453.com<br />
manual gear had been broken<br />
by the gunner in his attempts<br />
to escape.<br />
Without hesitation, Pilot<br />
Officer Mynarski made his<br />
way through the flames in an<br />
endeavour to reach the rear<br />
turret and release the gunner.<br />
Whilst so doing, his parachute<br />
and his clothing, up to<br />
the waist, were set on fire. All<br />
his efforts to move the turret<br />
and free the gunner were<br />
in vain. Eventually the rear<br />
gunner clearly indicated to<br />
him that there was nothing<br />
more he could do and that<br />
he should try to save his own<br />
life. Pilot Officer Mynarski<br />
reluctantly went back through<br />
the flames to the escape hatch.<br />
There, as a last gesture to the<br />
trapped gunner, he turned<br />
toward him, stood to attention<br />
in his flaming clothing<br />
and saluted, before he jumped<br />
out of the aircraft. Pilot Officer<br />
Mynarski’s descent was<br />
seen by French people on the<br />
ground. Both his parachute<br />
and his clothing were on fire.<br />
He was found eventually by<br />
the French, but was so severely<br />
burned that he died from his<br />
injuries.<br />
The rear gunner had a<br />
miraculous escape when the<br />
aircraft crashed. He subsequently<br />
testified that, had<br />
Pilot Officer Mynarski not<br />
attempted to save his comrade’s<br />
life, he could have left the aircraft<br />
in safety and would,<br />
doubtless, have escaped death.<br />
Pilot Officer Mynarski must<br />
have been fully aware that in<br />
trying to free the rear gunner<br />
he was almost certain to<br />
lose his own life. Despite this,<br />
with outstanding courage and<br />
complete disregard for his own<br />
safety, he went to the rescue.<br />
Willingly accepting the danger,<br />
Pilot Officer Mynarski<br />
lost his life by a most conspicuous<br />
act of heroism which called<br />
for valour of the highest order.”<br />
Pilot Officer Mynarski’s<br />
heroism is remembered<br />
both in Canada and in England.<br />
In Canada, his Victoria<br />
Cross and the fire axe he<br />
used to try and free Brophy<br />
are on display at Air Com-<br />
Fraternal Order of Eagles<br />
Kamloops Aerie • 3453<br />
“NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN ...”<br />
Community Concerned<br />
Community Involved<br />
People Helping People<br />
Rear Gunner Pat Brophy wrote a letter to Mynarski’s mother<br />
describing his friendship with her son and his sense of loss over<br />
his death.<br />
eag02_rem<br />
Photos and documents courtesy of The Turret<br />
mand Headquarters in Winnipeg.<br />
At 419 Squadron in<br />
Cold Lake Alberta, a room<br />
is set aside to showcase some<br />
wartime squadron awards,<br />
achievements and mementos<br />
and the married quarters are<br />
called Mynarski Park. In<br />
Hamilton Ontario one of<br />
only two Lancaster Bombers<br />
still flying is named the<br />
Mynarski Lanc.<br />
In England, a bronze statue<br />
of Pilot Officer Mynarski<br />
was unveiled on June 4 th<br />
2005 at Tees Valley International<br />
Airport ( near Durham<br />
in northern England).<br />
During the war this area<br />
was known as Middleton St<br />
George which was the home<br />
of the 6 th Bomber Group<br />
that included 419 squadron.<br />
The ceremony was<br />
attended by family members<br />
of the flight crew and<br />
the statue was unveiled by<br />
Colleen Bacon, the daughter<br />
of Pat Brophy. Also in<br />
attendance were 16 members<br />
of 573 Royal Canadian Air<br />
Cadets from Winnipeg.<br />
Pilot Officer Andrew<br />
Mynarski died on June 13,<br />
1944 at age 27. He is buried<br />
in the British Plot,<br />
plot number 40, Méharicourt<br />
Communal Cemetery,<br />
Méharicourt, Somme,<br />
France.<br />
This November 11 th ,<br />
when 419 Squadron does<br />
their missing man fly past to<br />
honour those Airmen and<br />
women who did not survive,<br />
take a moment and think<br />
of Pilot Officer Andrew<br />
Charles Mynarski VC.
November 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 • Page 3<br />
Remembering Our Heroes<br />
Ted Horner Rene Horner Bill Bedwell Art and Aileen Oakley<br />
For all your automotive needs<br />
➤ Honesty, integrity and excellent service<br />
Bob Chandra<br />
Sales & Lease Representative<br />
(250) 374-4477<br />
sales@mcauliffedodge.com<br />
K amloops<br />
DODGE • CHRYSLER • JEEP<br />
We honour those who fought for us...<br />
Who kept the faith and fought the fight;<br />
The glory theirs, the duty ours.<br />
“The Dealership that Cares” 2525 East Trans Canada Hwy, Kamloops<br />
cha02_rem<br />
Forget Me Not<br />
Orvel Dove John Wallace Don Cameron Beth Wooffindin<br />
Thank You Vets!<br />
Kipp-Mallery<br />
Home Health Care<br />
#240 3rd Avenue Kamloops<br />
372-0842<br />
kip01_rem<br />
KAMLOOPS FORD LINCOLN LTD.<br />
Serving Kamloops and Area Since 1984<br />
880 - 8th Street, Kamloops<br />
(250) 376-7266 • www.kamloopsford.ca<br />
Bill Petit<br />
Mary Joyce Dunn<br />
Class A WRN<br />
James Stephens<br />
Flight Officer<br />
Raymond C. Dunn<br />
Flight Liutenant<br />
Why the Poppy<br />
Poppy seeds will lie in the ground for years if the soil is undisturbed. That churned<br />
up cemetery known as the Western Front provided the ideal medium for masses of<br />
poppies to blanket the graves. By the 1920s, Legion Branches were selling the paper<br />
flowers to: provide assistance to needy ex-servicemen and their families; to build<br />
housing for seniors; to support programs like meals-on-wheels, drop-in centres, etc.<br />
Buy and wear a poppy. It is a simple, painless way to recognize contributions and<br />
sacrifices barely imaginable to us.<br />
Please take a moment<br />
to remember and<br />
honour our veterans’<br />
sacrifices November 11<br />
kfo02_rem<br />
Lorne Dagert<br />
~ Remembering Veterans on November 11th ~<br />
We want to say thank you to all who served and<br />
all those who gave their lives for our freedom<br />
Services for <strong>Senior</strong>s<br />
• If you have trouble contacting MSP or<br />
Pharmacare, give us a call.<br />
• Pick up a copy of Information for <strong>Senior</strong>s, your guide<br />
to programs and benefits in BC. Booklets are still available.<br />
Claude Richmond, MLA Kamloops<br />
On November 11,<br />
our thoughts go out to<br />
all those who have<br />
served our country<br />
Dorothy (Nell) Fennell<br />
Minister of Employment and Income Assistance<br />
#490, 175 - 2nd. Ave. (Bank of Montreal Building) Kamloops, B.C. V2C 5W1<br />
Phone: 314-6027 Fax: 314-6030 E-mail: claude.richmond.mla@leg.bc.ca<br />
We invite everyone to visit our website: www.clauderichmondmla.bc.ca<br />
ric01_rem<br />
ter01_rem
Page 4 • <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com<br />
November 2006<br />
The Forgotten<br />
We went to war when we were young<br />
To fight the cause that had just begun<br />
We knew not why we traveled far<br />
To unknown land beneath the sky<br />
On foreign land we made our stand<br />
To try to help us understand<br />
We met foe we had to fight<br />
Thank God we knew we were right<br />
The wounded were many, the medics few<br />
Most of us knew not what to do<br />
We suffered much all through the fight<br />
We buried our dead throughout the night<br />
Are we forgotten-does anyone care<br />
But when we were needed, we were there<br />
On land and sea and in the air<br />
It took our lives; it took our souls<br />
We lost our limbs, our comrades too<br />
We did not falter; we did not quit<br />
We made our stand; we will honour it.<br />
“Lest we forget. Lest we forget”<br />
Written by Ray Allison, member of legion Branch 52<br />
Kamloops. Reprinted with permission.<br />
Mr. Ray Allison served during the Second World War, as<br />
did two of his brothers, one died of his war injuries. Mr.<br />
Allison wrote this poem following his encounter with a<br />
young person who did not know what <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong><br />
stood for.<br />
Canadians are able to live in freedom and peace because of<br />
the service and sacrifices of people who served to protect<br />
that freedom and peace.<br />
November 11 is our day to honour them.<br />
A Soldier’s Experiences in War Torn Europe, 1944<br />
By Alex Bodie<br />
Upon arriving in Europe<br />
I had a lot of experiences,<br />
some great and a few that<br />
almost cost me my life.<br />
On December 24, 1944<br />
we were sent to a cleaning<br />
factory in Nijmegen, Holland<br />
with a load of coal.<br />
We were unloading when<br />
we heard a blast, we were<br />
under attack! One blast<br />
burst through the dam<br />
and another one hit one<br />
of the trucks. We made<br />
it out of there through a<br />
foot of water and no one<br />
was killed. Later we heard<br />
they had captured fortyfive<br />
German soldiers and<br />
hauled them off to the<br />
prisoner of war camp.<br />
Not long after that my<br />
brother and I were pushed<br />
to the front, at Ruckwell<br />
on the Siegfried line. It<br />
was midnight and we were<br />
in our tent when gunfire<br />
started. We ended up in a<br />
slit trench right beside the<br />
tent where the 88 shells<br />
continued to fall until three<br />
am. At dawn we looked<br />
around and saw the ground<br />
riddled with shell holes. I<br />
had never been so scared in<br />
my life.<br />
Three months after<br />
Christmas, we were sent<br />
to haul dirt in the bombed<br />
cities of Kleve, Emerich<br />
and Calcar. There was not<br />
much left of these cities<br />
when we arrived. While<br />
dumping the last load of<br />
the day a shell landed two<br />
feet in front of the truck,<br />
taking out the radiator, cutting<br />
the generator in half<br />
and a piece of the shell<br />
went through the brake<br />
pedal causing injury to my<br />
foot. After a week recovery<br />
I was back on the front<br />
line. We were ordered to<br />
build the Black Fire Bridge<br />
across the Rhine River<br />
when two Corporals were<br />
blasted by land mines and<br />
a bunch of men were killed<br />
by enemy shellfire. When<br />
someone told me that my<br />
twin brother was going<br />
to be in the first truck to<br />
be sent up with a load of<br />
rubble, through the heat<br />
caused by the flying lead,<br />
I went to him to say a few<br />
words before he left. We<br />
heard a plane overhead<br />
and our gunners threw on<br />
the search lights and took<br />
down the enemy aircraft.<br />
It crashed five hundred<br />
feet away from where we<br />
had taken cover under the<br />
truck. We were there for<br />
a week with few rations<br />
before receiving orders to<br />
leave.<br />
We had a big party and<br />
waited to go home with<br />
the Canadian Occupational<br />
Force.<br />
The Freemasons<br />
remember and<br />
thank the vets<br />
for their sacrifices<br />
Submitted Photos<br />
Alex Bodie currently resides at Ponderosa Place in Kamloops,<br />
though the events he recounts in this article took place 62 years<br />
ago, the memories of this time in his life remain vivid to Alex.<br />
Alex Bodie’s discharge papers from the Canadian Army, dated<br />
July 18, 1946. During his years of service he was posted<br />
throughout Europe.<br />
Kamloops Masonic Temple Association<br />
mtk03_rem<br />
On November 11,<br />
we will remember<br />
those who served …<br />
We salute<br />
those who have<br />
bravely served<br />
for our freedom<br />
Lest We Forget<br />
“We will<br />
remember them”<br />
The Royal Canadian Legion<br />
Branch 52 Kamloops<br />
425 Lansdowne Street<br />
374-1742 • Lounge 374-1743<br />
leg04_rem<br />
On the Kamloops Auto Mall<br />
2575 E.T.C. Highway Kamloops<br />
372-1542<br />
kia01_rem<br />
Kamloops Mazda<br />
On the Kamloops Auto Mall<br />
2595 E.T.C. Highway Kamloops<br />
828-1777 • out of town: call collect<br />
mazd01_rem
November 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 • Page 5<br />
<strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong><br />
For it isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe it.<br />
And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.<br />
Eleanor Roosevelt<br />
By Denise Eckstadt<br />
An ocean of time has passed away<br />
Since I first heard of <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong>.<br />
At boarding school in the countryside<br />
I stood in silence with national pride.<br />
But war and death seemed far away<br />
When I first heard <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong>.<br />
Suffering and sorrow I learned of course,<br />
But not related to violent force.<br />
Those peaceful distant years have gone<br />
Like a plaintive half-forgotten song.<br />
The “War to end all wars” began, -<br />
Mankind destroyed his fellow man.<br />
What is the reason behind it all<br />
Or is there reason there at all<br />
Why do we kill each other when<br />
Life is so sweet to other men<br />
I was in London through the Blitz<br />
Excitement, danger then, and risk<br />
Rained from the skies and all around,<br />
Destruction of a battleground.<br />
<strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong>. <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong>.<br />
They come and they go along life’s way.<br />
“Hope springs eternal,” I am told.<br />
I once was young, but now I am old.<br />
Salmon Arm and District<br />
War Brides<br />
By Denise Eckstadt – August 12, 1987<br />
Long ago and far away<br />
In distant lands we lived.<br />
We’d laugh and sing and work and play<br />
With never a thought of growing old.<br />
As war brides we came to this fair land,<br />
And joined our husbands hand in hand.<br />
Soon children came and we grew up<br />
Sudden, it seemed with many a shock!<br />
We meet together twice a month,<br />
Informally, it seems<br />
We laugh again and reminisce<br />
On long-forgotten dreams.<br />
Now we talk of aches and pains –<br />
Perhaps we’re getting old<br />
Of stature loss and weight gains,<br />
Of health and heat and cold!<br />
We do not discuss religious views<br />
Politics is among our taboos<br />
There is plenty of laughter still to share<br />
An adventure ahead, - who knows where<br />
We do not have a President,<br />
Just a Comfort Convener to present<br />
Hope and Joy when sickness comes<br />
Or some disaster to our loved one.<br />
Denise Eckstadt and her Canadian soldier husband<br />
A War Bride Story<br />
By Denise Eckstadt<br />
I am a War Bride from the<br />
Second World War. Many of<br />
us are now widows. Yes, we<br />
still feel homesick at times,<br />
but our own families are<br />
now here in Canada with us.<br />
I was 26 when I met my<br />
Canadian soldier in Hyde<br />
Park, London, England. He<br />
asked if he could sit down. I<br />
said “It’s a free country” and<br />
we started to talk. He was<br />
on leave and had no money<br />
to return to his barracks in<br />
the country. I offered to lend<br />
him the cash and gave him<br />
my address at the hospital<br />
residence.<br />
I was surprised when several<br />
weeks later the Matron<br />
called, “Nurse van Metz,<br />
there’s a military gentleman<br />
here to see you.” He had<br />
come back to pay back the<br />
cash and gave me a present<br />
of chocolate bars and cigarettes.<br />
After we became engaged<br />
his officer had to check me<br />
out, so I traveled in the back<br />
of an army truck to the barracks.<br />
We were married in<br />
Guest Services<br />
(250) 374-3400<br />
www.aberdeenmall.ca<br />
Submitted Photo<br />
London, and then he sailed<br />
home for discharge. I was<br />
booked to follow on the<br />
Aquitania with hundreds<br />
of other War Brides. We<br />
arrived in Halifax to hear of<br />
some girls already returning<br />
home!<br />
In Medicine Hat, Alberta,<br />
the family met me at the<br />
station. It was awesome. To<br />
me it was an adventure with<br />
the world an oyster ready to<br />
be opened. But, the second<br />
year, I felt I would walk back<br />
to England if there had been<br />
a bridge across the ocean.<br />
We moved to a farm outside<br />
Prince George in British<br />
Columbia. We had “running<br />
water” but I did the running.<br />
I learned to bake bread<br />
and later, on seventy acres<br />
in Malakwa, near Salmon<br />
Arm, traded a loaf of bread<br />
for a quart of milk with my<br />
neighbours. Blueberries were<br />
delicious there but the mosquitoes<br />
horrible.<br />
I now joke that the family<br />
are still paying me for the<br />
cash I lent a stranger long<br />
ago and far away!<br />
<strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> ~ November 11<br />
Thanking all veterans ~ We will remember them<br />
730 Cottonwood Avenue, Kamloops (250) 376-4777<br />
“At the Heart of the North Shore”<br />
On November 11th<br />
remember those<br />
who gave their<br />
lives for our<br />
freedom.<br />
870 Westminster Avenue, Kamloops<br />
(250) 376-0315 www.caretendersinc.com<br />
Army, Navy & Airforce<br />
Veterans in Canada<br />
ANAVETS 290<br />
30 years of service<br />
On November 11th,<br />
wear a poppy and<br />
remember our<br />
veterans<br />
444 Tranquille Road • 554-2455<br />
Remembering our<br />
Veterans<br />
ana05_rem<br />
COT08_rem<br />
On November 11, take a moment<br />
to remember<br />
all the veterans who gave so<br />
much to our country.<br />
sho25_rem<br />
our services include<br />
FREEDOM<br />
You’re still going to live life your way.<br />
And, we’re here to help if you need us.<br />
Chartwell Select<br />
Renaissance<br />
Retirement Residence<br />
628 Tranquille Road<br />
Kamloops, BC<br />
Call 250-376-5363<br />
www.chartwellreit.ca<br />
ren02_nov<br />
We Remember the Sacrifices,<br />
Past & Present.<br />
aber03_rem<br />
Betty Hinton, MP<br />
101-1150 Hillside Drive<br />
Kamloops, BC V2E 2N1<br />
(250) 851-4991<br />
www.bettyhinton.ca<br />
email: hinton.b@parl.gc.ca<br />
hin10_rem
Page 6 • <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com<br />
November 2006<br />
Whoever doesn’t know the past must have little<br />
understanding of the present and no vision of the future.<br />
~Joseph S. Raymond<br />
Honouring our veterans on<br />
<strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong><br />
Lili Seery<br />
4A-1315 Summit Dr.<br />
Kamloops, BC V2C 5R9<br />
(250) 374-1882<br />
www.edwardjones.com<br />
Member CIPF<br />
Making Sense of Investing<br />
To those who gave so much…<br />
Brown’s Repair Shop Ltd.<br />
220 Lansdowne Street, Kamloops<br />
Est. 1922 • Eric Brown 372-3656<br />
The Key Man<br />
We In Your support Business seniors!<br />
SEE11_rem<br />
We have not<br />
forgotten<br />
886 (Overlander) Wing<br />
Air Force Association of Canada<br />
88603_rem<br />
• Safe sales & service<br />
• Lock sales & service<br />
• Keys by code<br />
• Window grilles<br />
• Locks rekeyed<br />
Afghanistan Continued from Page 1<br />
of the <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> insert.<br />
in support of a search for<br />
a Taliban Arms Market.<br />
Troops were flown into the<br />
mountains to flush the enemy<br />
for Qalat.<br />
Captain Jasper was<br />
involved in all of these<br />
operations as well as the<br />
now infamous “friendly fire”<br />
event in which an American<br />
fighter dropped a 500 pound<br />
bomb on the Canadians by<br />
mistake. Capt Jasper was<br />
the Company Commander<br />
of the troops affected. As a<br />
result of this incident, four<br />
Canadians died and eight<br />
more were wounded. Those<br />
that died were Sergeant<br />
Marc Leger, Corporal Ainsworth<br />
Dyer, Private Richard<br />
Green and Private Nathan<br />
Smith.<br />
This was the beginning<br />
of our commitment to the<br />
Afghanistan conflict, today<br />
we remain on the ground<br />
to assist the legitimate government<br />
to stabilize and<br />
rebuild the country.<br />
Although the mission<br />
objective has changed<br />
somewhat, the cold hard<br />
fact is that Canadian Service<br />
Personnel continue to<br />
fight and die in far away<br />
lands. The ideals they are<br />
fighting for are honorable<br />
and they all deserve our<br />
respect and admiration.<br />
Captain Joe Jasper is currently<br />
the Operations Officer<br />
for the Rocky Mountain<br />
Rangers in Kamloops and<br />
continues to proudly wear<br />
the uniform of the Canadian<br />
Forces and the badges of<br />
the Princess Patricia’s Canadian<br />
Light Infantry.<br />
Canadian Fire Team sets up during Operation Cherokee Sky<br />
Photo By Captain Joe Jasper<br />
To A Soldier’s Mother<br />
By Pte. Walter Trusler, Calgary Highlanders<br />
Shed not a tear tho’ in your heart<br />
Our parting may have left you pain,<br />
For soon the sun shall break apart the clouds,<br />
And I’ll be home again.<br />
We must not weep, but carry on<br />
With smiles, that brush the tears away,<br />
And let our lips in joyous song,<br />
Bring sunshine to these stormy days.<br />
I’ve prayed the time shall not be long<br />
When soon your loving face I’ll see,<br />
Your loving arms, so brave and strong<br />
Dear Mother, then, will comfort me.<br />
Our Pledge To Those<br />
In Flanders Field<br />
By Pte. Walter Trusler, Calgary Highlanders<br />
We shall not fail to carry on,<br />
The torch our fathers once held high,<br />
Their symbol as our own shall be,<br />
For freedom neath a British sky.<br />
They have not died in vain that we,<br />
Their sons, now in this darkened hour,<br />
Forsake their wish that theirs be free,<br />
Be conquered by a foreign power.<br />
No! Ever we shall hold on high<br />
The torch-of-life, our fathers bore,<br />
That they beneath those foreign fields<br />
May sleep in peace forever more.<br />
Walter Trusler wrote these poems in 1940 and sent them to<br />
his mother. Walter now resides in Overlander Extended Care<br />
in Kamloops B.C.<br />
Remembering Our Heroes<br />
Remembering our<br />
veterans on November 11th<br />
Lest We Forget ...<br />
bro20_rem<br />
416 Mt. Paul Way<br />
Kamloops, BC<br />
(250) 372-2236<br />
Hugh Oliver Davison<br />
Submitted Photo<br />
Submitted Photo<br />
Gen. Reese (British General)<br />
and Bud Petit in Mandalay.<br />
Bud’s older brother Bill Petit<br />
(see page 3) was killed flying<br />
a Sterling Bomber towing a<br />
Horsa Glider full of troops on<br />
D <strong>Day</strong>. Bill was killed. Most of<br />
the troops were taken prisoner<br />
after the glider was<br />
released.<br />
In Memory of Those Who Served Their Country<br />
Local and long distance, by container or van<br />
Remembering those who<br />
sacrificed so much<br />
Your Full Service Travel Agency<br />
Four locations to serve you<br />
Aberdeen Mall • 250-372-0544 607 Victoria Street • 250-374-4487<br />
Chase • 250-679-8484 Merritt • 250-315-1413<br />
1-800-565-6253<br />
www.uniglobefreedomtravel.com<br />
ron01_rem<br />
WIL04_REM<br />
2073 Falcon, Valleyview Kamloops<br />
372-9525 • Toll Free 1-877-372-9525<br />
www.williamsmoving.com<br />
On November 11, take<br />
a moment to remember<br />
those who served for Canada<br />
uni02_rem
November 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 • Page 7<br />
1945<br />
On the<br />
Home<br />
Front<br />
• For $9000 you could buy<br />
a 12-room house with oak<br />
floors and trim, and three<br />
bathrooms.<br />
• Eggs cost 38 cents a dozen;<br />
a man’s three-piece suit<br />
could be bought for $72.50;<br />
and a woman’s summer dress<br />
could cost as little as $5.95;<br />
and a newspaper cost $0.03.<br />
• Newspapers were full of<br />
advertisements to “Buy Victory<br />
Bonds.”<br />
• On February 18, the first<br />
family allowance cheques<br />
went out to mothers across<br />
anada. Families with<br />
ncomes of less than $1200<br />
er year received a monthly<br />
llowance of $5 for a child<br />
nder age six, and $8 for<br />
hildren aged 13 to 15. Famlies<br />
with higher incomes<br />
eceived a percentage of<br />
hose amounts.<br />
Maurice “Rocket” Richard<br />
stonished the hockey world<br />
y scoring 50 goals in 50<br />
ames.<br />
Canadians went to the<br />
ovies to see Lawrence<br />
livier in “Forty Ninth Parllel”,<br />
Elizabeth Taylor and<br />
ickey Rooney in “National<br />
elvet”, and Roy Rogers in<br />
SQ Ranch Rodeo.”<br />
Many returning veterans<br />
ook advantage of the housng<br />
and education a grateful<br />
anada bestowed on them.<br />
y 1946, a total of 35,000<br />
veterans had enrolled in<br />
anada’s 29 universities, surassing<br />
figures for the entire<br />
niversity enrolment in the<br />
ountry before the outbreak<br />
f the War.<br />
A Kamloops Airman of WWII<br />
Submitted by Neil G. Burton<br />
Doug McPherson was a<br />
Kamloops resident whose<br />
aviation adventures and feats<br />
nearly cost him his life during<br />
the Second World War<br />
McPherson moved to<br />
Kamloops with his parents,<br />
Mr. & Mrs. George E.<br />
McPherson in 1917, where<br />
after attending school at<br />
Stuart Wood School and<br />
Kamloops Junior <strong>Senior</strong><br />
High School he entered the<br />
family business McPherson<br />
Funeral Chapel where he<br />
worked from 1934 to 1940<br />
as a funeral director and<br />
embalmer.<br />
In 1939 he took flying<br />
lessons with the Kamloops<br />
Aero Club. He was the first<br />
club member to fly solo at<br />
the Kamloops Municipal<br />
Airport (now Fulton Field.)<br />
In January 1940,<br />
McPherson applied to join<br />
the RCAF, but was turned<br />
down because he was married.<br />
Between August 1940<br />
and January 1941, McPherson<br />
was a private in the 2 nd<br />
Battalion Rocky Mountain<br />
Rangers, leaving to join<br />
the RCAF as an instructor<br />
– aircrew.<br />
AC2 McPherson was<br />
assigned to 4TC Regina as<br />
an elementary instructor<br />
and sent to Moose Jaw Flying<br />
Club for training. Next<br />
he was posted to RCAF<br />
Station Trenton where he<br />
stayed until June 1941 at<br />
which time he was reclassified<br />
as T/Sgt and transferred<br />
to No. 8 Elementary Flying<br />
Training School – Sea<br />
Island B.C. He was granted<br />
an indefinite leave, possibly<br />
without pay from the<br />
RCAF.<br />
You can’t seperate peace from freedom because no one can<br />
be at peace unless he has freedom.<br />
~Malcom X (1925-1965)<br />
McPherson was recalled<br />
to duty and assigned to 7EF<br />
Windsor, on June 19, 1942,<br />
followed by stints at other<br />
bases in Eastern Canada.<br />
While with the 6 SFTS<br />
Dunnville he received his<br />
wings.<br />
After pre-embarkation<br />
leave spent with family<br />
and friends in Kamloops<br />
in April 1943, and a commission<br />
of Pilot Officer,<br />
McPherson was assigned<br />
to a RAF Training Pool on<br />
May 26, 1943 and disembarked<br />
in the United Kingdom<br />
in June.<br />
McPherson put in time<br />
on Fighter Reconnaissance<br />
aircraft, in the United Kingdom<br />
and was posted to the<br />
28 Squadron in India, arriving<br />
in Bombay, on March<br />
24, 1944.<br />
McPherson went “missing<br />
in action” on April 19,<br />
1944, while operating out<br />
of India. He was shot down,<br />
crashed near the Assam-<br />
Burma border, and walked<br />
out, with the assistance of<br />
locals. PO McPherson was<br />
again safe with his unit May<br />
5, 1944, at which time he<br />
was hospitalized.<br />
McPherson was promoted<br />
to flight lieutenant<br />
on April15, 1945 while still<br />
in India.<br />
On September 25 1945,<br />
Flt. Lt. McPherson stepped<br />
off a troop train in Kamloops<br />
where he was honorably<br />
released and transferred<br />
to the RCAF Reserve, on<br />
October 31, 1945.<br />
After returning to Kamloops<br />
McPherson returned<br />
to the family business. In<br />
January 1946 McPherson<br />
was awarded a Mention in<br />
Dispatches.<br />
McPherson continued<br />
to enjoy his love of flying<br />
and was elected provincial<br />
president of the Kamloops<br />
Aero Club now known<br />
as the Kamloops Flying<br />
Club. In 1946 McPherson<br />
stepped down as president<br />
to become instructor for the<br />
club. He was reclassified on<br />
the Tiger Moth aircraft in<br />
January 1946.<br />
On July 2, 1946<br />
McPherson put on a display<br />
of spins and dives, in<br />
the Kamloops Flying Club,<br />
Tiger Moth, over the Kamloops<br />
Rodeo, at Exhibition<br />
Park.<br />
McPherson was made<br />
vice president of the<br />
enlarged aviation council<br />
(Kamloops) and on March<br />
8, 1947 was selected pro tem<br />
Officer Commanding of the<br />
204 Royal Canadian Air<br />
Cadet Squadron.<br />
At the JCC Air Show<br />
in June 1947 McPherson<br />
gave a thirty-minute performance<br />
of aerobatics in a<br />
Cornell aircraft and was the<br />
pilot of the aircraft from<br />
which Game Warden Stuart<br />
Hodgson parachuted to his<br />
death, by drowning in the<br />
Thompson River.<br />
With the death of Doug<br />
McPherson’s mother, in Victoria,<br />
in August 1948, Doug<br />
and his family moved to<br />
Victoria to be closer to his<br />
father in November 1948<br />
where he remained until<br />
1950 when they moved to<br />
Vancouver.<br />
A retired realtor, Doug<br />
McPherson lived in the<br />
Chilliwack area from 1957<br />
until his death in December<br />
1981 in his 66 th year.<br />
“Remembering is easy, we do it every day;<br />
Missing you is the heartache that never goes away”<br />
With heartfelt gratitude to all who have<br />
volunteered to safeguard the cause of freedom.<br />
Mankind must put an end to war,<br />
or war will put an end to mankind.<br />
~John F. Kennedy<br />
Family Restaurant at the<br />
Kamloops Travel Centre<br />
1885 West Trans Can Hwy<br />
Open 7 days a week ~ 24 hours a day!<br />
ver10_rem<br />
On November 11,<br />
take a moment to<br />
remember those who<br />
gave so much.<br />
Lest we forget…<br />
Seiko Ouchi<br />
NOTARY PUBLIC<br />
Tel:(250) 374-7373<br />
Email: souchi@notaries.bc.ca<br />
410 - 546 St. Paul Street, Kamloops<br />
OVERLAND<br />
PRESS (1990) LTD.<br />
441 Tranquille Rd.<br />
Kamloops<br />
(250) 376-8031<br />
Email: overlandpress@telus.net<br />
ouc06_rem<br />
On November 11,<br />
take a moment to<br />
remember those<br />
who gave so much<br />
for our country<br />
Remembering<br />
our<br />
Veterans<br />
on<br />
November 11<br />
Canada’s war veterans.....<br />
not to be forgotten<br />
ove01_rem<br />
On November 11,<br />
remember those<br />
who gave so much<br />
for our freedom.<br />
hbc01_rem<br />
Full Banquet Service<br />
(Weddings, Seminars, Meetings)<br />
540 Seymour St. Kamloops • 372-5110<br />
des28_rem<br />
ELY SWANSON<br />
March 2, 1914 to April 29, 2004<br />
Bruce Swanson of “Wills on Wheels”374-3737<br />
swa06_rem<br />
The Bay<br />
Aberdeen Mall Kamloops<br />
372-8271
Page 8 • <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong> 2006 <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Connector</strong> www.seniorconnector.com<br />
November 2006<br />
Canadian Corvettes Active in the Battle of the Atlantic<br />
By Milt Stanley<br />
The Battle of the Atlantic<br />
was “the only thing that ever<br />
frightened me.”<br />
~Winston Churchill<br />
The Battle of the Atlanic<br />
was not short and deciive.<br />
Lasting from 1939<br />
o 1945, its outcome was<br />
ever assured and a clear<br />
victory was not ascerained<br />
until the very end. It<br />
involved incredible resources,<br />
both military and civilian.<br />
Its theatre was massive,<br />
the whole of the Atlantic<br />
Ocean, especially the stormy<br />
north stretching from Nova<br />
Scotia and Newfoundland,<br />
past Greenland, Iceland and<br />
Ireland to the sea ports of<br />
Britain.<br />
As an island nation, Britain<br />
needed vast amounts<br />
of supplies and armaments<br />
To our fallen Heroes: Thank You!<br />
Better than honour and glory,<br />
and History’s iron pen,<br />
Was the thought of duty done<br />
and the love of his fellow-men.<br />
~Richard Watson Gilder<br />
Kamloops <strong>Senior</strong>s Village<br />
1220 Hugh Allan Drive, Kamloops, B.C. 250.571.1800<br />
www.retirementconcepts.com<br />
Nominated for<br />
Kamloops Chamber of Commerce<br />
Business of the Year Award<br />
svi14_rem<br />
Submitted Photo<br />
Corvette HMCS Kamloops K176 was built in Esquimault in 1941. Sailing through the Panama<br />
Canal, she quickly joined escort duty in the Battle of the Atlantic, which historians often credit the<br />
Royal Canadian Navy with winning. HMCS Kamloops also saw action in the Gulf of St. Lawrence,<br />
when German U-boats attempted to penetrate Canadian waters late in the war. She even served<br />
as movie star for Hollywood (Corvette K225, starring Randolph Scott, 1943) before finally being<br />
decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1945.<br />
from North America to<br />
sustain its population and<br />
continue to fight the Nazi<br />
juggernaut. These supplies<br />
were transported by civilian<br />
merchant ships setting out<br />
in slow, lumbering convoys<br />
from Halifax and Sydney,<br />
supported by military escort<br />
ships and whenever possible,<br />
aircraft.<br />
Most common of the<br />
escort ships was the “Flower”<br />
class corvette, a small,<br />
shallow-draft vessel that<br />
had a number of advantages.<br />
Corvettes could be built<br />
and put into service quickly,<br />
they could support the antisubmarine<br />
armaments then<br />
available, they were able to<br />
survive the heavy seas of<br />
North Atlantic storms, and<br />
could keep pace with German<br />
U-boats. HMCS Kamloops<br />
was typical.<br />
But the corvettes had<br />
disadvantages, too. The<br />
short length (about 105 ft.)<br />
and shallow draft made for<br />
uncomfortable quarters. It<br />
was described as a “lively”<br />
ship, probably by those who<br />
didn’t have to sail on one,<br />
and a “wet” ship by those<br />
who did. Their bows tended<br />
to plunge into larger waves<br />
and carry water the length<br />
of the forecastle. Some of<br />
that cold Atlantic water<br />
inevitably found its way into<br />
the crews quarters below,<br />
as described in the diary of<br />
Frank Curry, RCN, aboard<br />
HMCS Kamsack in 1941:<br />
A terrible time holding<br />
onto the convoy during the<br />
night--tremendous seas running<br />
and we are taking an<br />
awful beating. Everything<br />
bouncing around in the mess<br />
decks--dishes, helmets, hatboxes,<br />
tins of jam (open), letters<br />
and loaves of soggy bread-<br />
-all sloshing around in two<br />
feet of stinking North Atlantic<br />
Ocean. What a life....<br />
Escort duty typically<br />
lasted two weeks or more.<br />
Because fresh food could<br />
not be kept on board, meals<br />
were not attractive; mostly<br />
tinned beef and powdered<br />
potatoes. The cook might<br />
try to add gravy to make<br />
the meal “special.” As life<br />
aboard could be brutal and<br />
exhausting, liberal leaves<br />
were granted at the end of<br />
each run, but home leaves<br />
were rare.<br />
When action came, it was<br />
often long and nerve-wracking,<br />
as in this description<br />
witnessed by Frank Curry:<br />
… We hurled ourselves<br />
onward into the teeth of<br />
mountainous seas at full<br />
speed, we made an all-out<br />
effort to reach the convoy<br />
which has now been under<br />
steady attack for four days-<br />
-we found her at last, in the<br />
pitch darkness of 2:00 in the<br />
morning. She has now lost<br />
sixteen ships, and everyone<br />
feeling mighty tense as we<br />
took up screening position.<br />
Thick and miserable fog<br />
closed in on us at dawn, and<br />
we are going to have one<br />
great time hanging on to<br />
this convoy....<br />
Further excerpts from<br />
Frank Curry’s fascinating<br />
account of life on a corvette<br />
at sea and the Battle of the<br />
Atlantic may be found at the<br />
Veteran’s Affairs website:<br />
www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/<br />
secondwar/diary/curry<br />
Lest We Forget<br />
The Valleyview<br />
Overlanders Lions Club<br />
New members welcome!<br />
Call Ernie ~ 554-4666<br />
Kevin Krueger<br />
Member of the Legislative Assembly<br />
Kamloops - North Thompson<br />
Remembering<br />
the sacrifices of<br />
Canadian veterans<br />
on <strong>Remembrance</strong> <strong>Day</strong><br />
Call toll-free:<br />
1-888-299-0805 or<br />
314-6031 for calls from Darfield to Kamloops<br />
#9, 111 Oriole Road, Kamloops, BC V2C 4N6 • Fax: 314-6040<br />
Thank you, vets!<br />
On November 11,<br />
take a moment<br />
to remember ...<br />
ROYAL CANADIAN AIR CADETS<br />
204 BLACK MARIA SQUADRON<br />
If you don’t learn<br />
to laugh at<br />
trouble,<br />
you won’t have<br />
anything to<br />
laugh at when<br />
you are old .<br />
vol01_rem<br />
kru04_rem<br />
RCA04_rem<br />
Remembering the Service<br />
and Sacrifice of Our Veterans<br />
We Remember:<br />
The Sacrifice<br />
The Sorrow<br />
The Survivors<br />
On November 11<br />
Honour the<br />
Memories and<br />
Experiences of<br />
our Veterans.<br />
Thank You Veterans!<br />
Your courage<br />
will not be<br />
forgotten…<br />
bcl02_rem<br />
High Country Health Care Inc<br />
#108-540 Seymour St.<br />
Kamloops, BC V2C 2G9 • 372-2252<br />
hch03_rem<br />
Top of the Columbia Street Hill<br />
374-1135<br />
zim01_rem