Enlistment

This has always been one of my favourite pictures of Dad. I used to make up stories about this picture because I thought he looked so young and in this picture I could always see elements of my brothers' faces. I used to wonder about that time in his life. It's funny how things turn out. Of all his brothers Dad was the only one who was able to serve.

Brothers in England

I posted the picture of Dad's Platoon as a starting point. They all look pretty happy in this photo. From Dad's letters and the material I have found for WWII, the Canadians were generally held in reserve in England for quite some time. Dad was bored out of his mind according to some of his letters. I think he was stuck in England along with thousands of other Canadian soldiers for 3 years anyway.

Some of the first action in the war for these young men was D-Day, itself.

Spring 2009

I have not made much progress in the area of photographs and documents as yet. Life has a habit of getting in the way. I have started scanning Dad's army documents (this takes a great deal of time). In the meantime, I have requested Dad's complete army record from the government. We have some material but want to make sure there is no missing information. I hope it arrives before we head off to France!

I recently saw another photograph of Dad in his army uniform that I have never seen before at the funeral for my Aunt Mae (Dad's sister). He was home on leave before he was sent overseas . Many of Dad's war letters are written to her as well as his Mom. A copy of this picture will be high on my list.

I have a large number of letters Dad wrote during the War. When I first read through them it was soon after Dad's death and I was just too sad to keep reading them. I need to review them again.

My Goal

I have lots of great original material. It takes the form of documents, pictures, and post cards for the most part. So far it has taken over some major areas of my home! The immediate challenge has been what to DO with it all.

I have decided on a format but it will take will power and organization to get it all done. As a history buff, it is inconceivable that any of this material should be destroyed. It is also unfair to leave this undocumented work for the next generation. These decisions are ours, my brothers and I, so we need to make them.

The Canadian Virtual War Memorial and Museum are asking for documents and pictures for their collection. In my view, this is the best place for these records. They will be cherished and become part of the fabric of our collective Canadian History. Before we let them go, we need to record them in to a digital record for ourselves and our family histories.