LCdr Andrew Cumming was born in Guthrie, Ontario, just outside Barrie. He attended St. Andrew’s College and studied engineering at the University of Toronto. He then entered the working world, and unhappy with what he encountered he chose to join the Canadian Forces. Given his background he was drawn to the navy, and he has […]
Art McGann was born June 18, 1924 in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a family of 12 children – and 5 of the brothers were in uniform. Art grew up during the Depression and he remembers that the family had to “make do”. Pearl Harbor would change the fortunes of Art’s generation: he graduated […]
Allan MacIsaac was born March 22, 1927, in Inverness County, on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. He grew up the son of a lobsterman/coal miner in a large family, where he was one of 12 children. He remembers his childhood in positive terms, working on the farm and swimming in the ocean. Allan’s father had […]
Ralph Smith was born October 12, 1930 in Perdue, Saskatchewan. His father had emigrated from Shropshire, England in 1910, and he farmed that quarter section of land he had purchased in Saskatchewan; Ralph’s mother was from Brampton, Ontario, and she had moved out west originally as Ralph’s father’s housekeeper. Ralph grew up there as one […]
Elmer Auld was born July 4, 1924, and he grew up in Port Arthur/Fort William (now Thunder Bay), Ontario. His father was a Great War veteran who suffered from the effects of being gassed; he was an Irishman from Belfast, Ireland who came to Philadelphia because of the Irish Famine, later going to Port Arthur […]
Alice Nowaczyk was born November 7, 1924 in Bodfari in north Wales, not too far from Wrexham. Her father was a Great War veteran who also saw service in World War Two; he had re-enlisted in the reserves prior to WW2, and when that conflict began he found himself at Dunkirk, where he was wounded […]
Aubrey Ingraham was born August 5, 1921 in Burgeo, Newfoundland. He grew up in that small fishing community, where his father was lost at sea when Aubrey was just a boy. That and the Great Depression led to a tough early life, where the war offered somewhat of an escape. Aubrey took work as a […]
David Yeo was born June 27 (or 28), 1946 in County Monaghan, Ireland; he emigrated to Canada with his mother when he was 6 months old and grew up in Prince Edward Island. His father served for six years in the Canadian Artillery in Sicily and Italy; David’s mother was a nurse in Britain who […]
Norm Goodspeed was born in Maine on January 19, 1927. His parents were from New Brunswick and had gone to the U.S. in search of work, but the Great Depression brought them back to Canada, and they settled in the Fredericton area. Norm’s father had inherited the family farm, but it was not his passion. […]
Paul Vaillancourt was born October 21, 1938, in Dill Township, just outside of Subbury, Ontario. Paul’s father worked for the railroad until he was injured on the job, which put the family in difficult financial circumstances. Paul’s mother was left alone with their seven children as he underwent multiple surgeries, and the stress of that […]
Douglas Stinson was born October 30, 1922 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. His father was a Great War veteran who served in the Canadian navy, and after the war he continued as a wireless operator, and Doug recalls that the family was often on the move during this time. Doug was the oldest of six, and […]
Dave Yoho was born August 19, 1928 in Philadelphia. He grew up in a row house, during the difficult times of the Great Depression, commenting that he had no real “fun”. He did not participate in sports, parties or dances: he worked on weekends and helped to support his family. When the war came, Dave […]
Asta Butt was born June 12, 1930 in a small village not too far from Bremen, Germany. Her father had a business transporting goods on the rivers of northern Germany, and her grandfather – a Great War veteran – did the same. Asta went to school , and has largely positive memories from her early […]
Jean MacLean (nee Morley) was born September 11, 1924 in Norwich, Ontario, and she grew up in Claremont, just to the east of Toronto. Her father Fred was a jeweler and general labourer who had served overseas in the Great War, and her mother Verna was a nurse. Jean grew up against the backdrop of […]
Mary Owen (nee Adamson) was born June 2, 1926 in Creighton Mine, Ontario, a small mining town near Sudbury. Her father , a veteran of the Great War, was a gold prospector in those early days, and the family lived in a number of small towns across Ontario’s north at that time. Eventually they settled […]
Ralph Diegel was born October 27, 1926 in Ferris, Ontario, just south of North Bay. He had been in the Sea Cadets in high school, so when the war came he opted for the Royal Canadian Navy. Initial training took place in Thunder Bay, and from there he was shipped down to HMCS Cornwallis […]
Arnold Resnicoff was born October 10, 1946 in Washington, D.C. He grew up there in the context of the 1950s and 60s, witness to the tremendous forces of change that were shaping the world. He lived in the new suburban neighborhoods of the time, watching the miracle of television – on three channels. He also […]
LCdr Damien Ciotti was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, and he joined the Naval Reserve in HMCS Griffon as a Boatswain in 2004 while attending Lakehead University. He enrolled in the Regular Officer Training Plan in 2005 as a Maritime Surface and Sub-Surface Officer (MARS), and graduated from Lakehead in 2008 with an HB.A […]
Dr. William Anderson was born December 12, 1927: there is no actual record of his birth, but that is the date that he and his adoptive parents chose. His parents were from Moultrie and Cordele respectively, and their family histories had only recently emerged from the yoke of slavery. The young William knew these people […]
Tom Wakeman was born November 22, 1922 in Birmingham, England. He was born into a large family of six brothers and one sister. Tom’s father had had a career as a soldier, serving with British imperial forces in the Sudan and India, and he also served with the Royal Warwickshire Regiment in the Great War, […]
Joe Samuels was born December 31, 1930 in Baghdad, Iraq: he was actually uncertain of his birthday but knew that he was born during Hanukkah and upon his emigration to Israel he chose the December 31 date – to coincide with an international celebration! Joe grew up in a Baghdad that he remembers as multicultural […]
Bill Snow was born September 13, 1922 in Bay Roberts, Newfoundland. He grew up in that small community alongside his five sisters. Bill recalls that his father was a fisherman – but that he did many other jobs in the off season. Bill went to school but left in Grade 8: work was available and […]
Joice Foley was born April 1, 1924, in Wick, in Hampshire, England. It was a rural area where she has fond memories of the animals in the fields – and of the long walks to school and everywhere else. Joice’s parents were in service, an occupation they expected her to join too. Joice consequently left […]
Pat Patteson and his twin brother Morris were born November 24, 1921 in Smiley, Texas, a rural farming town. The boys mostly worked on the farm, milking cows and doing other chores; Pat also pumped gas at the local station. For fun the brothers participated in intramurals playing sports, including football, basketball and tennis. At […]
Frederick Joseph Reid – Joe – was born April 19, 1920, in Sillsville, Ontario. He spent his early years there on the family farm, alongside his seven siblings. The family later moved to Trenton, and that is where Joe spent his formative years. He went to high school there, but he left early to take […]
Everett Johns was born September 30, 1925 in Ingersoll, Ontario. He grew up there during the difficult years of the Great Depression, going to school and the movies – and occasionally getting in trouble. Everett’s young family life was unfortunately not happy, so when the war came – and when he was old enough – […]
Howard Kingsland was born October 4, 1921 in Montreal, Quebec, the son of a Great War veteran. He grew up in the city’s north end, and he recalls that while the Great Depression was difficult, the family was able to make ends meet. Howards completed high school and went to work for the CNR, and […]
Harry Waddingham was born on October 16, 1916 in London, England. Harry’s father was a Great War veteran who had been living in Montreal when the war broke out, so he and Harry’s uncle enlisted in the Canadian Artillery in that conflict. When he went overseas he was deployed briefly in Northern Ireland, and that […]
Ossie Lakness was born in Govan, Saskatchewan on May 5, 1923. He grew up against the backdrop of the Great Depression in that small farming community, the youngest in a large family. Ossie remembers well those difficult early years, when dust storms and grasshopper plagues impacted the people of the Prairies. When the war came […]
Bill Balabanow was born February 17, 1926 in the little town of Blue Ridge Summit in southern Pennsylvania, though the family moved to Lancaster in 1931, and that is where he spent most of his childhood. Bill’s parents divorced when he was an infant, so his parental and family memories come mainly from his mother’s […]