A Remembrance Day to Remember

 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War2 but commemorations in Canada this year will be limited due to the global pandemic.

The Canadian Legion website states," National Remembrance Day ceremony 2020 : A more intimate commemoration".

"For the first time, spectators will be discouraged from attending in person, due to the limited space and requirement to physically distance. The smaller number of people participating will be required to remain 2m apart and will need to wear masks unless performing certain duties related to the ceremony".

Since these special remembrance day ceremonies will involve limited in person participation, I thought it appropriate to reflect and salute the contributions of some of my family members made during the war from my current COVID-19 Homefront location starting with my father George.

My father did not speak about the war very often except on the D-Day Anniversaries and Remembrance Days. He did not glorify war especially the second world war, but said

World War 2 was a necessary evil to stop the Nazis.

My father told me he joined the Royal Canadian Navy at the age of 17, which would have been in 1940 or 1941 depending on when he enlisted. He said he was a big for his age and therefore was not rejected for being underage.

As a member of the Combined Operations of land , sea and air he participated in raids against the Germans in occupied Europe. (My father always referred to the Combined Ops. as the Combined Forces under Mountbatten. He once mentioned he was fortunate to hear the Chief of the Combined Operations Louis Mountbatten address the troops in person).

One time when I asked my Dad for more details about his activities during the war, he informed me in his usual low voice that he was trained in hand to hand combat and the use of explosives. When I looked sceptically at him after his surprising revelation, he demonstrated his quiet assertion by putting me in a complicated head lock which didn't hurt. He said if I moved my neck it would break. I didn't question his war recollections after that.

He also revealed he was stoker mechanic in the engine rooms of the ships he was assigned to and also an anti-aircraft gunner on deck. I asked him if he ever shot down any planes but he didn't answer.

Since the Combined Operations were involved in raids, I knew my father would have been part of some major attacks. After asking him directly if he participated in raids, he said the Dieppe raid of August 1942 was "a disaster."

According to a 2014 CBC story, "Remembering Canada's Role in WW2"

"The raid on Dieppe " became one of the darkest chapters in Canadian military history"

An estimated 907 Canadians were killed, and 1,946 became prisoners of war".

No major objectives were accomplished, but some later believed that valuable lessons were learned that would be later applied on the beaches of Normandy".

My father also confirmed that he was also involved in 'Operation Overlord" also known as D-Day on June 6, 1944.

Five beaches were raided that day with most of the Canadians concentrated on Juno beach.

As per the aforementioned CBC article, "In the first six days of battle, about 3,000 Canadians were killed or wounded. Yet Canadian infantry pressed on, moving inland to capture enemy positions throughout June and July".

My father was in the thick of the raid. Two ships on either side of his ship were hit.

Dad piloted one of the landing craft to take troops ashore. (He would have been 20 years old then.)