Remembrance Day Supplement (4.3 MB) - Senior Connector

November 2006 Senior Connector www.seniorconnector.com Remembrance Day 2006 • Page 1 

Senior Connector Remembers 

By Mike Keetch 

Captain Joe Jasper joined 

the Military in 1989 and 

became a member of the 

Princess Patricia’s Canadian 

Light Infantry (PPCLI). 

His Career started off as 

you would expect in a peace 

ime military. In 1993 things 

tarted to change as he was 

ent to Croatia to serve 

term of duty. When he 

eturned, things got back 

o normal, until 2002 when 

e was sent to Afghanistan 

with the first contingent 

f Canadian Troops. Speifically 

with “A” Company 

Para) of the Third Batalion 

PPCLI. Their first 

onth on the ground was 

pent living in slit trenches. 

This was the rainy season 

nd a lot of the time, the 

renches were deep in water. 

espite this, the troops 

pent 24 hours a day, seven 

ays a week manning the 

ine. The men were heard to 

ay that it reminded them 

f what it must have been 

ike in world war one. To 

dd to the misery, daytime 

emperatures were around 

Captain Joe Jasper 

Afghanistan 

Then and Now 

Photo By Mike Keetch 

40 degrees and at night the 

temperature would drop to 

about 20 degrees. This was 

quite cold after sweltering in 

the 40 degree heat all day. 

After that first month, 

they began the war in earnest! 

During his tour of duty, 

Captain Jasper took part in 

Operation Apollo with Task 

Force Rakkasan. This was 

part of Canada’s contribution 

to the Global War on 

Terror. They became the 

first ground combat troops 

deployed against a declared 

enemy since Korea. At this 

time the Canadians were 

working with the 101 st Airborne 

Division and the 

187 th Regimental Combat 

Team. Together they staged 

operations from Kandahar 

to Kabul, fighting in the 

mountains. 

At this time, the Canadian 

troops were “warfighting” 

as opposed to the current 

mandate of rebuilding as the 

main focus. 

Within Operation 

Apollo were several smaller 

operations. Operation Ana- 

Photo By Captain Joe Jasper 

Canadian Troops unload at the Landing Zone for Operation TORII 

conda was the last big battle 

fought at the time and 

involved Canadian snipers 

engaging in the worldest 

longest shot at over 2400 

metres. 

Operation Harpoon was 

an air assault to the top of a 

mountain to clear it of Taliban 

and insurgents. This 

was a four-day operation 

and was the highest (9000 

feet) land battle ever fought 

by the American Forces. 

Operation TORII was an 

operation searching caves in 

the Tora Bora mountains. 

This was a traditional place 

for the insurgents to hide 

as they have been fighting 

in these mountains forever. 

The surreal effect of this 

operation was that Captain 

Jasper said “the area looked 

like Banff ”. The mission 

statement for this operation 

was to “gather intelligence 

and deny al Qaeda and 

the Taliban use of the complex. 

Operation Cherokee 

Sky was an ambush.... 

See Afghanistan on Remembrance 

Day insert page 6 

REMEMBRANCE DAY 

Ceremonies & Parade 

November 11 

10:45am The parade will assemble at the back of Heritage 

House in Riverside Park 

10:45am Mounting of the Guard of Honor 

Services will be conducted by: The Reverend Canon Jack 

Phelps and The Reverend Gary Paterson. 

10:58am “O Canada” 

10:59am The Last Post 

11:00am Two Minute Silence 

11:02am Lament 

11:04am Fly Past by 419 Squadron (Cold Lake, AB) 

11:05am Reveille “Act Of Remembrance” 

11:06am Prayers 

11:40am The parade will move out onto Lorne Street, proceed 

West on Lorne Street under 1st Ave. underpass, West 

on West Victoria around the traffic island, then East on Victoria 

Street past saluting base in front of City Hall, continuing 

East on Victoria Street to dispersal area in the 400 block 

of Victoria Street. The youth groups turn right off Victoria, 

south on 4th Ave. to St. Paul St., left on St Paul for dispersal 

and continue into the United Church Hall for refreshments. 

After the parade, festivities for Veterans and parade participants 

will be available at the following locations: 

• Royal Canadian Legion Branch 52 – 425 Lansdowne St. 

• Anavets Unit 290 – 444 Tranquille Rd. 

• Rocky Mountain Rangers Canteen 

• Moose Lodge – 406 Fortune St. 

• Eagles Hall – 1805 Tranquille Rd. 

The Poppy Campaign Office is 

located at 260 ~ Third Ave. and 

is open 10 ~ 4 Monday to Friday. 

For more information 

please call 374-0623 

City of 

Kamloops 

Thank You 

Heartfelt Thanks to All Veterans 

We Will Remember Them 

Mayor Terry Lake 

Councillor John De Cicco 

Councillor Jim Harker 

Councillor Tina Lange 

Councillor Joe Leong 

Councillor Peter Milobar 

Councillor John O’Fee 

Councillor Arjun Singh 

Councillor Patricia Wallace 

www.kamloops.ca 

KAM06_DDAY 

Community Concerned, 

Community Involved 

Thank You Veterans! 

We will not forget your 

courage or your sacrifice... 

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WAL★MART 

We sell for less! 

Thank you veterans! 

Lest we forget ... 

100-1055 Hillside Drive 

Kamloops 

374-1591 

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Page 2 • Remembrance Day 2006 Senior Connector www.seniorconnector.com 

November 2006 

We shall find peace. We shall hear angels. We shall see the 

sky sparkling with diamonds. 

Anton Chekov 

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Mynarski continued from page 1 

Gunner. 

The crew became close 

comrades over the first 12 

operations they flew together 

leading up to the fateful 

night of June 12, 1944. 

Mynarski had just been promoted 

to Pilot Officer the 

day before and he and his 

close friend Flight Lieutenant 

Pat Brophy were lounging 

on the grass discussing 

the fact that this was 

their 13 th operational flight 

and they would be over the 

target on Friday the 13 th . 

Mynarski reached into the 

grass and pulled up a four 

leaf clover. He gave it to 

Brophy and said “you keep 

it”. Brophy put it in his 

leather flying helmet. What 

follows is the account of 

that flight over France on 

June 12/13, 1944. 

The citation as it 

appeared in the London 

Gazette on 11 October 1946 

reads as follows: 

“Pilot Officer Mynarski 

was the mid-upper gunner of 

a Lancaster aircraft, detailed 

to attack a target at Cambrai 

in France, on the night of 

12 th June 1944. The aircraft 

was attacked from below and 

astern by an enemy fighter 

and ultimately came down in 

flames 

As an immediate result of 

the attack, both port engines 

failed. Fire broke out between 

the mid-upper turret and the 

rear turret, as well as in the 

port wing. The flames soon 

became fierce and the captain 

ordered the crew to abandon 

the aircraft. 

Pilot Officer Mynarski left 

his turret and went toward 

the escape hatch. He then saw 

that the rear gunner was still 

in his turret and apparently 

unable to leave it. The turret 

was, in fact, immovable, 

since the hydraulic gear had 

been put out of action when 

the port engines failed, and the 

755 Tranquille Road 

376-1311 

www.kamloopseagles3453.com 

manual gear had been broken 

by the gunner in his attempts 

to escape. 

Without hesitation, Pilot 

Officer Mynarski made his 

way through the flames in an 

endeavour to reach the rear 

turret and release the gunner. 

Whilst so doing, his parachute 

and his clothing, up to 

the waist, were set on fire. All 

his efforts to move the turret 

and free the gunner were 

in vain. Eventually the rear 

gunner clearly indicated to 

him that there was nothing 

more he could do and that 

he should try to save his own 

life. Pilot Officer Mynarski 

reluctantly went back through 

the flames to the escape hatch. 

There, as a last gesture to the 

trapped gunner, he turned 

toward him, stood to attention 

in his flaming clothing 

and saluted, before he jumped 

out of the aircraft. Pilot Officer 

Mynarski’s descent was 

seen by French people on the 

ground. Both his parachute 

and his clothing were on fire. 

He was found eventually by 

the French, but was so severely 

burned that he died from his 

injuries. 

The rear gunner had a 

miraculous escape when the 

aircraft crashed. He subsequently 

testified that, had 

Pilot Officer Mynarski not 

attempted to save his comrade’s 

life, he could have left the aircraft 

in safety and would, 

doubtless, have escaped death. 

Pilot Officer Mynarski must 

have been fully aware that in 

trying to free the rear gunner 

he was almost certain to 

lose his own life. Despite this, 

with outstanding courage and 

complete disregard for his own 

safety, he went to the rescue. 

Willingly accepting the danger, 

Pilot Officer Mynarski 

lost his life by a most conspicuous 

act of heroism which called 

for valour of the highest order.” 

Pilot Officer Mynarski’s 

heroism is remembered 

both in Canada and in England. 

In Canada, his Victoria 

Cross and the fire axe he 

used to try and free Brophy 

are on display at Air Com- 

Fraternal Order of Eagles 

Kamloops Aerie • 3453 

“NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN ...” 

Community Concerned 

Community Involved 

People Helping People 

Rear Gunner Pat Brophy wrote a letter to Mynarski’s mother 

describing his friendship with her son and his sense of loss over 

his death. 

eag02_rem 

Photos and documents courtesy of The Turret 

mand Headquarters in Winnipeg. 

At 419 Squadron in 

Cold Lake Alberta, a room 

is set aside to showcase some 

wartime squadron awards, 

achievements and mementos 

and the married quarters are 

called Mynarski Park. In 

Hamilton Ontario one of 

only two Lancaster Bombers 

still flying is named the 

Mynarski Lanc. 

In England, a bronze statue 

of Pilot Officer Mynarski 

was unveiled on June 4 th 

2005 at Tees Valley International 

Airport ( near Durham 

in northern England). 

During the war this area 

was known as Middleton St 

George which was the home 

of the 6 th Bomber Group 

that included 419 squadron. 

The ceremony was 

attended by family members 

of the flight crew and 

the statue was unveiled by 

Colleen Bacon, the daughter 

of Pat Brophy. Also in 

attendance were 16 members 

of 573 Royal Canadian Air 

Cadets from Winnipeg. 

Pilot Officer Andrew 

Mynarski died on June 13, 

1944 at age 27. He is buried 

in the British Plot, 

plot number 40, Méharicourt 

Communal Cemetery, 

Méharicourt, Somme, 

France. 

This November 11 th , 

when 419 Squadron does 

their missing man fly past to 

honour those Airmen and 

women who did not survive, 

take a moment and think 

of Pilot Officer Andrew 

Charles Mynarski VC.


Remembering Our Heroes 

Ted Horner Rene Horner Bill Bedwell Art and Aileen Oakley 

For all your automotive needs 

➤ Honesty, integrity and excellent service 

Bob Chandra 

Sales & Lease Representative 

(250) 374-4477 

sales@mcauliffedodge.com 

K amloops 

DODGE • CHRYSLER • JEEP 

We honour those who fought for us... 

Who kept the faith and fought the fight; 

The glory theirs, the duty ours. 

“The Dealership that Cares” 2525 East Trans Canada Hwy, Kamloops 

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Forget Me Not 

Orvel Dove John Wallace Don Cameron Beth Wooffindin 

Thank You Vets! 

Kipp-Mallery 

Home Health Care 

#240 3rd Avenue Kamloops 

372-0842 

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KAMLOOPS FORD LINCOLN LTD. 

Serving Kamloops and Area Since 1984 

880 - 8th Street, Kamloops 

(250) 376-7266 • www.kamloopsford.ca 

Bill Petit 

Mary Joyce Dunn 

Class A WRN 

James Stephens 

Flight Officer 

Raymond C. Dunn 

Flight Liutenant 

Why the Poppy 

Poppy seeds will lie in the ground for years if the soil is undisturbed. That churned 

up cemetery known as the Western Front provided the ideal medium for masses of 

poppies to blanket the graves. By the 1920s, Legion Branches were selling the paper 

flowers to: provide assistance to needy ex-servicemen and their families; to build 

housing for seniors; to support programs like meals-on-wheels, drop-in centres, etc. 

Buy and wear a poppy. It is a simple, painless way to recognize contributions and 

sacrifices barely imaginable to us. 

Please take a moment 

to remember and 

honour our veterans’ 

sacrifices November 11 

kfo02_rem 

Lorne Dagert 

~ Remembering Veterans on November 11th ~ 

We want to say thank you to all who served and 

all those who gave their lives for our freedom 

Services for Seniors 

• If you have trouble contacting MSP or 

Pharmacare, give us a call. 

• Pick up a copy of Information for Seniors, your guide 

to programs and benefits in BC. Booklets are still available. 

Claude Richmond, MLA Kamloops 

On November 11, 

our thoughts go out to 

all those who have 

served our country 

Dorothy (Nell) Fennell 

Minister of Employment and Income Assistance 

#490, 175 - 2nd. Ave. (Bank of Montreal Building) Kamloops, B.C. V2C 5W1 

Phone: 314-6027 Fax: 314-6030 E-mail: claude.richmond.mla@leg.bc.ca 

We invite everyone to visit our website: www.clauderichmondmla.bc.ca 

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November 2006 

The Forgotten 

We went to war when we were young 

To fight the cause that had just begun 

We knew not why we traveled far 

To unknown land beneath the sky 

On foreign land we made our stand 

To try to help us understand 

We met foe we had to fight 

Thank God we knew we were right 

The wounded were many, the medics few 

Most of us knew not what to do 

We suffered much all through the fight 

We buried our dead throughout the night 

Are we forgotten-does anyone care 

But when we were needed, we were there 

On land and sea and in the air 

It took our lives; it took our souls 

We lost our limbs, our comrades too 

We did not falter; we did not quit 

We made our stand; we will honour it. 

“Lest we forget. Lest we forget” 

Written by Ray Allison, member of legion Branch 52 

Kamloops. Reprinted with permission. 

Mr. Ray Allison served during the Second World War, as 

did two of his brothers, one died of his war injuries. Mr. 

Allison wrote this poem following his encounter with a 

young person who did not know what Remembrance Day 

stood for. 

Canadians are able to live in freedom and peace because of 

the service and sacrifices of people who served to protect 

that freedom and peace. 

November 11 is our day to honour them. 

A Soldier’s Experiences in War Torn Europe, 1944 

By Alex Bodie 

Upon arriving in Europe 

I had a lot of experiences, 

some great and a few that 

almost cost me my life. 

On December 24, 1944 

we were sent to a cleaning 

factory in Nijmegen, Holland 

with a load of coal. 

We were unloading when 

we heard a blast, we were 

under attack! One blast 

burst through the dam 

and another one hit one 

of the trucks. We made 

it out of there through a 

foot of water and no one 

was killed. Later we heard 

they had captured fortyfive 

German soldiers and 

hauled them off to the 

prisoner of war camp. 

Not long after that my 

brother and I were pushed 

to the front, at Ruckwell 

on the Siegfried line. It 

was midnight and we were 

in our tent when gunfire 

started. We ended up in a 

slit trench right beside the 

tent where the 88 shells 

continued to fall until three 

am. At dawn we looked 

around and saw the ground 

riddled with shell holes. I 

had never been so scared in 

my life. 

Three months after 

Christmas, we were sent 

to haul dirt in the bombed 

cities of Kleve, Emerich 

and Calcar. There was not 

much left of these cities 

when we arrived. While 

dumping the last load of 

the day a shell landed two 

feet in front of the truck, 

taking out the radiator, cutting 

the generator in half 

and a piece of the shell 

went through the brake 

pedal causing injury to my 

foot. After a week recovery 

I was back on the front 

line. We were ordered to 

build the Black Fire Bridge 

across the Rhine River 

when two Corporals were 

blasted by land mines and 

a bunch of men were killed 

by enemy shellfire. When 

someone told me that my 

twin brother was going 

to be in the first truck to 

be sent up with a load of 

rubble, through the heat 

caused by the flying lead, 

I went to him to say a few 

words before he left. We 

heard a plane overhead 

and our gunners threw on 

the search lights and took 

down the enemy aircraft. 

It crashed five hundred 

feet away from where we 

had taken cover under the 

truck. We were there for 

a week with few rations 

before receiving orders to 

leave. 

We had a big party and 

waited to go home with 

the Canadian Occupational 

Force. 

The Freemasons 

remember and 

thank the vets 

for their sacrifices 

Submitted Photos 

Alex Bodie currently resides at Ponderosa Place in Kamloops, 

though the events he recounts in this article took place 62 years 

ago, the memories of this time in his life remain vivid to Alex. 

Alex Bodie’s discharge papers from the Canadian Army, dated 

July 18, 1946. During his years of service he was posted 

throughout Europe. 

Kamloops Masonic Temple Association 

mtk03_rem 


we will remember 

those who served … 

We salute 

those who have 

bravely served 

for our freedom 

Lest We Forget 

“We will 

remember them” 

The Royal Canadian Legion 

Branch 52 Kamloops 

425 Lansdowne Street 

374-1742 • Lounge 374-1743 

leg04_rem 

On the Kamloops Auto Mall 

2575 E.T.C. Highway Kamloops 

372-1542 

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Kamloops Mazda 

On the Kamloops Auto Mall 

2595 E.T.C. Highway Kamloops 

828-1777 • out of town: call collect 

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Remembrance Day 

For it isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe it. 

And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it. 

Eleanor Roosevelt 

By Denise Eckstadt 

An ocean of time has passed away 

Since I first heard of Remembrance Day. 

At boarding school in the countryside 

I stood in silence with national pride. 

But war and death seemed far away 

When I first heard Remembrance Day. 

Suffering and sorrow I learned of course, 

But not related to violent force. 

Those peaceful distant years have gone 

Like a plaintive half-forgotten song. 

The “War to end all wars” began, - 

Mankind destroyed his fellow man. 

What is the reason behind it all 

Or is there reason there at all 

Why do we kill each other when 

Life is so sweet to other men 

I was in London through the Blitz 

Excitement, danger then, and risk 

Rained from the skies and all around, 

Destruction of a battleground. 

Remembrance Day. Remembrance Day. 

They come and they go along life’s way. 

“Hope springs eternal,” I am told. 

I once was young, but now I am old. 

Salmon Arm and District 

War Brides 

By Denise Eckstadt – August 12, 1987 

Long ago and far away 

In distant lands we lived. 

We’d laugh and sing and work and play 

With never a thought of growing old. 

As war brides we came to this fair land, 

And joined our husbands hand in hand. 

Soon children came and we grew up 

Sudden, it seemed with many a shock! 

We meet together twice a month, 

Informally, it seems 

We laugh again and reminisce 

On long-forgotten dreams. 

Now we talk of aches and pains – 

Perhaps we’re getting old 

Of stature loss and weight gains, 

Of health and heat and cold! 

We do not discuss religious views 

Politics is among our taboos 

There is plenty of laughter still to share 

An adventure ahead, - who knows where 

We do not have a President, 

Just a Comfort Convener to present 

Hope and Joy when sickness comes 

Or some disaster to our loved one. 

Denise Eckstadt and her Canadian soldier husband 

A War Bride Story 

By Denise Eckstadt 

I am a War Bride from the 

Second World War. Many of 

us are now widows. Yes, we 

still feel homesick at times, 

but our own families are 

now here in Canada with us. 

I was 26 when I met my 

Canadian soldier in Hyde 

Park, London, England. He 

asked if he could sit down. I 

said “It’s a free country” and 

we started to talk. He was 

on leave and had no money 

to return to his barracks in 

the country. I offered to lend 

him the cash and gave him 

my address at the hospital 

residence. 

I was surprised when several 

weeks later the Matron 

called, “Nurse van Metz, 

there’s a military gentleman 

here to see you.” He had 

come back to pay back the 

cash and gave me a present 

of chocolate bars and cigarettes. 

After we became engaged 

his officer had to check me 

out, so I traveled in the back 

of an army truck to the barracks. 

We were married in 

Guest Services 

(250) 374-3400 

www.aberdeenmall.ca 

Submitted Photo 

London, and then he sailed 

home for discharge. I was 

booked to follow on the 

Aquitania with hundreds 

of other War Brides. We 

arrived in Halifax to hear of 

some girls already returning 

home! 

In Medicine Hat, Alberta, 

the family met me at the 

station. It was awesome. To 

me it was an adventure with 

the world an oyster ready to 

be opened. But, the second 

year, I felt I would walk back 

to England if there had been 

a bridge across the ocean. 

We moved to a farm outside 

Prince George in British 

Columbia. We had “running 

water” but I did the running. 

I learned to bake bread 

and later, on seventy acres 

in Malakwa, near Salmon 

Arm, traded a loaf of bread 

for a quart of milk with my 

neighbours. Blueberries were 

delicious there but the mosquitoes 

horrible. 

I now joke that the family 

are still paying me for the 

cash I lent a stranger long 

ago and far away! 

Remembrance Day ~ November 11 

Thanking all veterans ~ We will remember them 

730 Cottonwood Avenue, Kamloops (250) 376-4777 

“At the Heart of the North Shore” 

On November 11th 

remember those 

who gave their 

lives for our 

freedom. 

870 Westminster Avenue, Kamloops 

(250) 376-0315 www.caretendersinc.com 

Army, Navy & Airforce 

Veterans in Canada 

ANAVETS 290 

30 years of service 

On November 11th, 

wear a poppy and 

remember our 

veterans 

444 Tranquille Road • 554-2455 

Remembering our 

Veterans 

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On November 11, take a moment 

to remember 

all the veterans who gave so 

much to our country. 

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We Remember the Sacrifices, 

Past & Present. 

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Betty Hinton, MP 

101-1150 Hillside Drive 

Kamloops, BC V2E 2N1 

(250) 851-4991 

www.bettyhinton.ca 

email: hinton.b@parl.gc.ca 

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November 2006 

Whoever doesn’t know the past must have little 

understanding of the present and no vision of the future. 

~Joseph S. Raymond 

Honouring our veterans on 

Remembrance Day 

Lili Seery 

4A-1315 Summit Dr. 

Kamloops, BC V2C 5R9 

(250) 374-1882 

www.edwardjones.com 

Member CIPF 

Making Sense of Investing 

To those who gave so much… 

Brown’s Repair Shop Ltd. 

220 Lansdowne Street, Kamloops 

Est. 1922 • Eric Brown 372-3656 

The Key Man 

We In Your support Business seniors! 

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We have not 

forgotten 

886 (Overlander) Wing 

Air Force Association of Canada 

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• Safe sales & service 

• Lock sales & service 

• Keys by code 

• Window grilles 

• Locks rekeyed 

Afghanistan Continued from Page 1 

of the Remembrance Day insert. 

in support of a search for 

a Taliban Arms Market. 

Troops were flown into the 

mountains to flush the enemy 

for Qalat. 

Captain Jasper was 

involved in all of these 

operations as well as the 

now infamous “friendly fire” 

event in which an American 

fighter dropped a 500 pound 

bomb on the Canadians by 

mistake. Capt Jasper was 

the Company Commander 

of the troops affected. As a 

result of this incident, four 

Canadians died and eight 

more were wounded. Those 

that died were Sergeant 

Marc Leger, Corporal Ainsworth 

Dyer, Private Richard 

Green and Private Nathan 

Smith. 

This was the beginning 

of our commitment to the 

Afghanistan conflict, today 

we remain on the ground 

to assist the legitimate government 

to stabilize and 

rebuild the country. 

Although the mission 

objective has changed 

somewhat, the cold hard 

fact is that Canadian Service 

Personnel continue to 

fight and die in far away 

lands. The ideals they are 

fighting for are honorable 

and they all deserve our 

respect and admiration. 

Captain Joe Jasper is currently 

the Operations Officer 

for the Rocky Mountain 

Rangers in Kamloops and 

continues to proudly wear 

the uniform of the Canadian 

Forces and the badges of 

the Princess Patricia’s Canadian 

Light Infantry. 

Canadian Fire Team sets up during Operation Cherokee Sky 

Photo By Captain Joe Jasper 

To A Soldier’s Mother 

By Pte. Walter Trusler, Calgary Highlanders 

Shed not a tear tho’ in your heart 

Our parting may have left you pain, 

For soon the sun shall break apart the clouds, 

And I’ll be home again. 

We must not weep, but carry on 

With smiles, that brush the tears away, 

And let our lips in joyous song, 

Bring sunshine to these stormy days. 

I’ve prayed the time shall not be long 

When soon your loving face I’ll see, 

Your loving arms, so brave and strong 

Dear Mother, then, will comfort me. 

Our Pledge To Those 

In Flanders Field 

By Pte. Walter Trusler, Calgary Highlanders 

We shall not fail to carry on, 

The torch our fathers once held high, 

Their symbol as our own shall be, 

For freedom neath a British sky. 

They have not died in vain that we, 

Their sons, now in this darkened hour, 

Forsake their wish that theirs be free, 

Be conquered by a foreign power. 

No! Ever we shall hold on high 

The torch-of-life, our fathers bore, 

That they beneath those foreign fields 

May sleep in peace forever more. 

Walter Trusler wrote these poems in 1940 and sent them to 

his mother. Walter now resides in Overlander Extended Care 

in Kamloops B.C. 

Remembering Our Heroes 

Remembering our 

veterans on November 11th 

Lest We Forget ... 

bro20_rem 

416 Mt. Paul Way 

Kamloops, BC 

(250) 372-2236 

Hugh Oliver Davison 



Gen. Reese (British General) 

and Bud Petit in Mandalay. 

Bud’s older brother Bill Petit 

(see page 3) was killed flying 

a Sterling Bomber towing a 

Horsa Glider full of troops on 

D Day. Bill was killed. Most of 

the troops were taken prisoner 

after the glider was 

released. 

In Memory of Those Who Served Their Country 

Local and long distance, by container or van 

Remembering those who 

sacrificed so much 

Your Full Service Travel Agency 

Four locations to serve you 

Aberdeen Mall • 250-372-0544 607 Victoria Street • 250-374-4487 

Chase • 250-679-8484 Merritt • 250-315-1413 

1-800-565-6253 

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WIL04_REM 

2073 Falcon, Valleyview Kamloops 

372-9525 • Toll Free 1-877-372-9525 

www.williamsmoving.com 

On November 11, take 

a moment to remember 

those who served for Canada 

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1945 

On the 

Home 

Front 

• For $9000 you could buy 

a 12-room house with oak 

floors and trim, and three 

bathrooms. 

• Eggs cost 38 cents a dozen; 

a man’s three-piece suit 

could be bought for $72.50; 

and a woman’s summer dress 

could cost as little as $5.95; 

and a newspaper cost $0.03. 

• Newspapers were full of 

advertisements to “Buy Victory 

Bonds.” 

• On February 18, the first 

family allowance cheques 

went out to mothers across 

anada. Families with 

ncomes of less than $1200 

er year received a monthly 

llowance of $5 for a child 

nder age six, and $8 for 

hildren aged 13 to 15. Famlies 

with higher incomes 

eceived a percentage of 

hose amounts. 

Maurice “Rocket” Richard 

stonished the hockey world 

y scoring 50 goals in 50 

ames. 

Canadians went to the 

ovies to see Lawrence 

livier in “Forty Ninth Parllel”, 

Elizabeth Taylor and 

ickey Rooney in “National 

elvet”, and Roy Rogers in 

SQ Ranch Rodeo.” 

Many returning veterans 

ook advantage of the housng 

and education a grateful 

anada bestowed on them. 

y 1946, a total of 35,000 

veterans had enrolled in 

anada’s 29 universities, surassing 

figures for the entire 

niversity enrolment in the 

ountry before the outbreak 

f the War. 

A Kamloops Airman of WWII 

Submitted by Neil G. Burton 

Doug McPherson was a 

Kamloops resident whose 

aviation adventures and feats 

nearly cost him his life during 

the Second World War 

McPherson moved to 

Kamloops with his parents, 

Mr. & Mrs. George E. 

McPherson in 1917, where 

after attending school at 

Stuart Wood School and 

Kamloops Junior Senior 

High School he entered the 

family business McPherson 

Funeral Chapel where he 

worked from 1934 to 1940 

as a funeral director and 

embalmer. 

In 1939 he took flying 

lessons with the Kamloops 

Aero Club. He was the first 

club member to fly solo at 

the Kamloops Municipal 

Airport (now Fulton Field.) 

In January 1940, 

McPherson applied to join 

the RCAF, but was turned 

down because he was married. 

Between August 1940 

and January 1941, McPherson 

was a private in the 2 nd 

Battalion Rocky Mountain 

Rangers, leaving to join 

the RCAF as an instructor 

– aircrew. 

AC2 McPherson was 

assigned to 4TC Regina as 

an elementary instructor 

and sent to Moose Jaw Flying 

Club for training. Next 

he was posted to RCAF 

Station Trenton where he 

stayed until June 1941 at 

which time he was reclassified 

as T/Sgt and transferred 

to No. 8 Elementary Flying 

Training School – Sea 

Island B.C. He was granted 

an indefinite leave, possibly 

without pay from the 

RCAF. 

You can’t seperate peace from freedom because no one can 

be at peace unless he has freedom. 

~Malcom X (1925-1965) 

McPherson was recalled 

to duty and assigned to 7EF 

Windsor, on June 19, 1942, 

followed by stints at other 

bases in Eastern Canada. 

While with the 6 SFTS 

Dunnville he received his 

wings. 

After pre-embarkation 

leave spent with family 

and friends in Kamloops 

in April 1943, and a commission 

of Pilot Officer, 

McPherson was assigned 

to a RAF Training Pool on 

May 26, 1943 and disembarked 

in the United Kingdom 

in June. 

McPherson put in time 

on Fighter Reconnaissance 

aircraft, in the United Kingdom 

and was posted to the 

28 Squadron in India, arriving 

in Bombay, on March 

24, 1944. 

McPherson went “missing 

in action” on April 19, 

1944, while operating out 

of India. He was shot down, 

crashed near the Assam- 

Burma border, and walked 

out, with the assistance of 

locals. PO McPherson was 

again safe with his unit May 

5, 1944, at which time he 

was hospitalized. 

McPherson was promoted 

to flight lieutenant 

on April15, 1945 while still 

in India. 

On September 25 1945, 

Flt. Lt. McPherson stepped 

off a troop train in Kamloops 

where he was honorably 

released and transferred 

to the RCAF Reserve, on 

October 31, 1945. 

After returning to Kamloops 

McPherson returned 

to the family business. In 

January 1946 McPherson 

was awarded a Mention in 

Dispatches. 

McPherson continued 

to enjoy his love of flying 

and was elected provincial 

president of the Kamloops 

Aero Club now known 

as the Kamloops Flying 

Club. In 1946 McPherson 

stepped down as president 

to become instructor for the 

club. He was reclassified on 

the Tiger Moth aircraft in 

January 1946. 

On July 2, 1946 

McPherson put on a display 

of spins and dives, in 

the Kamloops Flying Club, 

Tiger Moth, over the Kamloops 

Rodeo, at Exhibition 

Park. 

McPherson was made 

vice president of the 

enlarged aviation council 

(Kamloops) and on March 

8, 1947 was selected pro tem 

Officer Commanding of the 

204 Royal Canadian Air 

Cadet Squadron. 

At the JCC Air Show 

in June 1947 McPherson 

gave a thirty-minute performance 

of aerobatics in a 

Cornell aircraft and was the 

pilot of the aircraft from 

which Game Warden Stuart 

Hodgson parachuted to his 

death, by drowning in the 

Thompson River. 

With the death of Doug 

McPherson’s mother, in Victoria, 

in August 1948, Doug 

and his family moved to 

Victoria to be closer to his 

father in November 1948 

where he remained until 

1950 when they moved to 

Vancouver. 

A retired realtor, Doug 

McPherson lived in the 

Chilliwack area from 1957 

until his death in December 

1981 in his 66 th year. 

“Remembering is easy, we do it every day; 

Missing you is the heartache that never goes away” 

With heartfelt gratitude to all who have 

volunteered to safeguard the cause of freedom. 

Mankind must put an end to war, 

or war will put an end to mankind. 

~John F. Kennedy 

Family Restaurant at the 

Kamloops Travel Centre 

1885 West Trans Can Hwy 

Open 7 days a week ~ 24 hours a day! 

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take a moment to 

remember those who 

gave so much. 

Lest we forget… 

Seiko Ouchi 

NOTARY PUBLIC 

Tel:(250) 374-7373 

Email: souchi@notaries.bc.ca 

410 - 546 St. Paul Street, Kamloops 

OVERLAND 

PRESS (1990) LTD. 

441 Tranquille Rd. 

Kamloops 

(250) 376-8031 

Email: overlandpress@telus.net 

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take a moment to 


who gave so much 

for our country 

Remembering 

our 

Veterans 

on 

November 11 

Canada’s war veterans..... 

not to be forgotten 

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who gave so much 

for our freedom. 

hbc01_rem 

Full Banquet Service 

(Weddings, Seminars, Meetings) 

540 Seymour St. Kamloops • 372-5110 

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ELY SWANSON 

March 2, 1914 to April 29, 2004 

Bruce Swanson of “Wills on Wheels”374-3737 

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The Bay 

Aberdeen Mall Kamloops 

372-8271


November 2006 

Canadian Corvettes Active in the Battle of the Atlantic 

By Milt Stanley 

The Battle of the Atlantic 

was “the only thing that ever 

frightened me.” 

~Winston Churchill 

The Battle of the Atlanic 

was not short and deciive. 

Lasting from 1939 

o 1945, its outcome was 

ever assured and a clear 

victory was not ascerained 

until the very end. It 

involved incredible resources, 

both military and civilian. 

Its theatre was massive, 

the whole of the Atlantic 

Ocean, especially the stormy 

north stretching from Nova 

Scotia and Newfoundland, 

past Greenland, Iceland and 

Ireland to the sea ports of 

Britain. 

As an island nation, Britain 

needed vast amounts 

of supplies and armaments 

To our fallen Heroes: Thank You! 

Better than honour and glory, 

and History’s iron pen, 

Was the thought of duty done 

and the love of his fellow-men. 

~Richard Watson Gilder 

Kamloops Seniors Village 

1220 Hugh Allan Drive, Kamloops, B.C. 250.571.1800 

www.retirementconcepts.com 

Nominated for 

Kamloops Chamber of Commerce 

Business of the Year Award 

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Corvette HMCS Kamloops K176 was built in Esquimault in 1941. Sailing through the Panama 

Canal, she quickly joined escort duty in the Battle of the Atlantic, which historians often credit the 

Royal Canadian Navy with winning. HMCS Kamloops also saw action in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, 

when German U-boats attempted to penetrate Canadian waters late in the war. She even served 

as movie star for Hollywood (Corvette K225, starring Randolph Scott, 1943) before finally being 

decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1945. 

from North America to 

sustain its population and 

continue to fight the Nazi 

juggernaut. These supplies 

were transported by civilian 

merchant ships setting out 

in slow, lumbering convoys 

from Halifax and Sydney, 

supported by military escort 

ships and whenever possible, 

aircraft. 

Most common of the 

escort ships was the “Flower” 

class corvette, a small, 

shallow-draft vessel that 

had a number of advantages. 

Corvettes could be built 

and put into service quickly, 

they could support the antisubmarine 

armaments then 

available, they were able to 

survive the heavy seas of 

North Atlantic storms, and 

could keep pace with German 

U-boats. HMCS Kamloops 

was typical. 

But the corvettes had 

disadvantages, too. The 

short length (about 105 ft.) 

and shallow draft made for 

uncomfortable quarters. It 

was described as a “lively” 

ship, probably by those who 

didn’t have to sail on one, 

and a “wet” ship by those 

who did. Their bows tended 

to plunge into larger waves 

and carry water the length 

of the forecastle. Some of 

that cold Atlantic water 

inevitably found its way into 

the crews quarters below, 

as described in the diary of 

Frank Curry, RCN, aboard 

HMCS Kamsack in 1941: 

A terrible time holding 

onto the convoy during the 

night--tremendous seas running 

and we are taking an 

awful beating. Everything 

bouncing around in the mess 

decks--dishes, helmets, hatboxes, 

tins of jam (open), letters 

and loaves of soggy bread- 

-all sloshing around in two 

feet of stinking North Atlantic 

Ocean. What a life.... 

Escort duty typically 

lasted two weeks or more. 

Because fresh food could 

not be kept on board, meals 

were not attractive; mostly 

tinned beef and powdered 

potatoes. The cook might 

try to add gravy to make 

the meal “special.” As life 

aboard could be brutal and 

exhausting, liberal leaves 

were granted at the end of 

each run, but home leaves 

were rare. 

When action came, it was 

often long and nerve-wracking, 

as in this description 

witnessed by Frank Curry: 

… We hurled ourselves 

onward into the teeth of 

mountainous seas at full 

speed, we made an all-out 

effort to reach the convoy 

which has now been under 

steady attack for four days- 

-we found her at last, in the 

pitch darkness of 2:00 in the 

morning. She has now lost 

sixteen ships, and everyone 

feeling mighty tense as we 

took up screening position. 

Thick and miserable fog 

closed in on us at dawn, and 

we are going to have one 

great time hanging on to 

this convoy.... 

Further excerpts from 

Frank Curry’s fascinating 

account of life on a corvette 

at sea and the Battle of the 

Atlantic may be found at the 

Veteran’s Affairs website: 

www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/ 

secondwar/diary/curry 

Lest We Forget 

The Valleyview 

Overlanders Lions Club 

New members welcome! 

Call Ernie ~ 554-4666 

Kevin Krueger 

Member of the Legislative Assembly 

Kamloops - North Thompson 

Remembering 

the sacrifices of 

Canadian veterans 

on Remembrance Day 

Call toll-free: 

1-888-299-0805 or 

314-6031 for calls from Darfield to Kamloops 

#9, 111 Oriole Road, Kamloops, BC V2C 4N6 • Fax: 314-6040 

Thank you, vets! 


take a moment 

to remember ... 

ROYAL CANADIAN AIR CADETS 

204 BLACK MARIA SQUADRON 

If you don’t learn 

to laugh at 

trouble, 

you won’t have 

anything to 

laugh at when 

you are old . 

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Remembering the Service 

and Sacrifice of Our Veterans 

We Remember: 

The Sacrifice 

The Sorrow 

The Survivors 

On November 11 

Honour the 

Memories and 

Experiences of 

our Veterans. 

Thank You Veterans! 

Your courage 

will not be 

forgotten… 

bcl02_rem 

High Country Health Care Inc 

#108-540 Seymour St. 

Kamloops, BC V2C 2G9 • 372-2252 

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Top of the Columbia Street Hill 

374-1135 

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Remembrance Day Supplement (4.3 MB) - Senior Connector

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