Across the Nation
Reports from the Regions
BC Banter
Ab/Sk Action
Manitoba Moments
Ontario Offerings
Quebec Quotes
Eastern Breezes
BC Banter ….
With spring just around the corner, the BC Region extends our best wishes to all Hong Kong veterans, widows, members and friends of the HKVCA.
Bill Muir is one of our Region’s Hong Kong veterans (WG) and he lives in Comox on Vancouver Island. Bill, accompanied by his son Don Muir, Don’s wife Leona (Lee) and Bill’s daughter Rhona Botthof (nee Muir), visited Ottawa from September 19-22, 2010 to see the Hong Kong Veterans Memorial Wall. While in our nation’s capital they also visited the War Museum, National War Memorial and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Don said that the weather was favourable during their visit, which enabled them to travel around Ottawa with ease. They were duly impressed with the Memorial Wall as well as the completed landscaping at the site. Regarding their trip to the War Museum and the HK exhibit Don stated, “We have a better understanding and appreciation as Dad explained some of the items to us. The Wall was the main reason for attending and was well worth it.”
We express our gratitude to Don Muir for sharing these events with us. Thanks also to Don and his family who donate and place a wreath every year for the HKVCA on Remembrance Day in Armstrong, BC.
In the photograph below from left to right are: son Don, Bill Muir and daughter Rhona at the HK Memorial Wall.
In the photograph below
from left to right are: Don and Leona Muir, Bill Muir and Rhona Botthof at the
HK Memorial Wall.
In December 2010, 53 of our members participated in a pilgrimage to Hong Kong and Japan to remember and pay their respects. Three Hong Kong veterans, Gerry Gerrard (RCCS), Ken Pifher (RRC) and Fred Cooper (RRC) accompanied our members. We express our gratitude to Mike Babin (Ontario Regional Director) for his dedication to make this trip a very successful event. Please visit our website to view the many photographs. Gerry Gerrard, who lives in Esquimalt on Vancouver Island was accompanied by his daughters Bev Campbell and Pat White and their husbands Eric Campbell and Dave White.
From left to right in the photograph below, which was taken at Yokohama Cemetery in Japan, are: Dave and Pat White, Gerry Gerrard and Bev and Eric Campbell.
The photograph below was taken at the Consular General’s (Doreen Steidle) Reception in Hong Kong. From left to right are Gerry Gerrard, Fred Cooper and Ken Pifher.
On December 9 and 10, 2010, Lee Naylor (BC Region Director) and Graeme Stacey (HKVCA member and high school social studies teacher) told the story of ‘C’ Force at the International Human Rights Day Symposium for Students. This symposium was sponsored by ALPHA (Association for Learning and Preserving the History of WWII in Asia) in conjunction with the Vancouver School Board and was held at the Vancouver Technical Secondary School with a full program on both dates. Lee writes, “Graeme and I hosted two presentations per day. There were six hundred students attending the many presentations. This year’s event was deemed by all concerned as very successful. As a result, the Vancouver Technical School is pleased to announce they will be hosting the 2011 symposium. Graeme and I have already been working on our presentation for next year. This school is very old and resembles an aging English building with ramparts. At the end of the symposium I asked about the military scrolls on the walls with names of military personnel. Unknown to us during our 2-day presentations, Kano Iynoue (the Kamloops Kid) had graduated from this very school. We mentioned him in our presentations without knowing he had graduated from the school we were lecturing in. How ironic it was to learn that we were telling his horrific story in the school he had attended.”
In the photograph below, Lee is talking to students in front of a ‘C’ Force hat badge display.
In the photograph below, Graeme is making a presentation to students. Lee is sitting to the left of the photograph.
As time permits, Bev Campbell pursues our Phone Pal Program contacting several Hong Kong veterans and widows that have agreed to be reached by phone periodically. Recently, Bev has been in contact with Harry Gyselman (WG) and Bill Muir (WG) who both live in Comox, BC. Bev also spoke with Betty Waldenberger in Kelowna who advises us that our good friend and comrade Aubrey Flegg (WG) had family visiting him over Christmas and he was excited to see them. Jan Solecki (HKVDC) doesn’t get out and about much anymore but is enjoying the home life. Bev sent Margaret Rozario a photograph of the HK Memorial Wall and Marge was very grateful. Pearl MacPherson keeps busy with her volunteer work at the senior’s center in Delta and still likes to travel when she can. Bev also spoke with Catherine Penny whose late husband Don Penny served with Bev’s dad, Gerry Gerrard, in the RCCS. Don’s nephew, Burke Penny, has written a book titled “Beyond the Call” which outlines the contribution the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals made to ‘C’ Force. Gerry Gerrard remains very active at his Legion Branch and although his eyesight doesn’t allow him to drive anymore, he still goes bowling, golfing and square dancing.
You may be wondering what our former Regional Director has been doing with her spare time. She (Linda Quesnel nee Stewart) has been directing her talents and energy towards helping her husband Ron with his business, the Spiritual Freedom Centre. Linda and Ron met in AA and they both have over 30 years of sobriety. Ron is a drug and alcohol counsellor who was inspired to develop his own spiritual growth, addictions-recovery program. This one-year ‘Choices for Freedom’ program combines the 12 Steps with the 12 Powers of Mind and has four stages of eight weeks each. He wrote a book on his program called “An Inside Job”. Just like our Association, the members of each group develop life long friendships as they study and discuss the powers of their subconscious mind and deepen and strengthen their spirituality. They learn to become the happy and successful people they were always meant to be by practicing positive techniques to change their lives for the better. For more information on the program, visit their website at www.spiritualfreedomcentre.com or phone (250) 294-2417 and speak with Ron. Linda wants me to tell you that she’s very happy with her new focus, but she misses the constant contact with the veterans and all their “support staff”. She wishes you all the very best for the future.
In closing, we express our gratitude to the Quebec Region for agreeing to host the 2011 HKVCA National Convention in Granby. I had the privilege of attending the Quebec Region reunion in Granby in 2006 and I can assure you that Lucette, Marcel and their team are fabulous hosts and know how to treat their guests. Until next time, please take care of each other.
Respectfully submitted by Murray Doull on behalf of the BC Region.
Ab/Sask Action...
Norma Fuchs reports that all is quiet in their region but will soon be planning their annual luncheons.
Howard Jesse, the presenter, participated in the Saskatchewan Council of Social Science Teachers’ Conference in Moose Jaw, SK on Friday, March 4th. There is a brief account of this under the Education section of Ontario Region report.
Manitoba Moments ….
(by Juliet Lafortune, Region Director)
Hello to All - Well here we are with another season coming fast upon us. I found this a rough winter and I am sure I have a lot of you who agree with me. We have lost many members of the HKVCA and HKVA this last year. Our sympathy goes out to the families. I remember so many of them growing up as a part of my life. The Hong Kong Veterans have been a big part of my life since I was 18 yrs of age and was active with some of the social functions. That was when I met so many of the members and their families. My father Marcien Lafortune, H6503 was proud to be a member of the HKVA and was very proud that I became an active member.
This is all leading to some thing and that is to each and every one of you I ask you to be responsible in renewing your memberships, spread the word about the HKV and their battle and how we the HKVCA are working very hard in preserving the memory of these men. Come out and support the activities.
The Colour Party attends many parades on behalf of the Hong Kong Veterans. Please get a pen out and mark these dates on your calendar –
Vimy Ridge, April 10@ 2 pm with reception to follow at #1 Legion, Sergeant and Maryland; also April 10 Korean Vets Annual Fund Raiser $10.00 per person call Bob Nisbet - 237-4427
May 15 Liberation Of Holland, 1 pm Gateway Indoor Arena,
May 29 Decoration Day Service, Brookside Cemetery 1:30 pm - there will be tours staring at 11:00 am Reception at Bardal Hall,
June 12 12:30 pm Memorial Day, Lac Du Bonnet,
July 1st 11:00 a.m. Canada Day, Lac Du Bonnet,
July 16 10:30 a.m. Pinawa Birthday parade Pinawa, MB
HKVA/HKVCA National Convention Granby QC Aug 12-14 you will receive information in the mail
Aug 21 @ 1 pm VJ Day Memorial - the Lieutenant Governor Philip Lee in attendance more information to follow
Oct 22 Hong Kong Veterans Reunion Dinner & Dance more information to follow
Remembrance Day Service, November 11 in locations all over the city and Convention Centre.
I realize this is a lot of information to follow so check the HKVCA website for the calendar if you can, or phone me and I will help you out.
I would like to thank Carol Hadley, Pat Bale. Pam Heinrichs and Barry Mitchell these people go out and put their time in at Heritage Days in May and SAG in October in hopes of educating the public on the HKVA /HKVCA.
We are having our Tea and Tidbits on March 19 at 1pm at St James Legion .We hold our monthly luncheons and meetings the 2nd Thursday of the month at 12 PM come out and put in your ideas. We are very open to any ideas you might have on how we can keep you involved in the HKVCA please let us know some of your ideas. Let us know how you are doing and if there is something special you would like to share with us.
Happy Anniversary and best wishes go to William & Nada Bell
on their 65th Anniversary. Happy Birthday to the following people George
Peterson was 90 on February 8, Margaret Peterson February 10, Anne
Stebbe February 14th and Larry Stebbe was 88 on February 25 and as
you notice you never mention a woman’s age Ha Ha. Also William Krohn
turned 92, Tom Dewar is 89, Harry Hawryshok is 87, George
Nobiss is 86 and Bill Bell is 94 - sorry to say but lost touch with George
Coutts. We wish you all the best in the coming year and more.
Well I would like to hear from you now and take care. Stay in touch.
Juliet Lafortune
(jlafortune@mts.net)
Ontario Offerings….
Mike Babin, our Regional Director reports:
From our Regional Director, Mike Babin: In this “connected” age we are becoming used to getting more and more of our information via the internet, and information on almost any topic you can imagine is just a few keystrokes away. The Hong Kong story is no exception, and we are very fortunate to have a wonderful web site – managed by Jim Trick in Victoria, BC – which contains a wealth of information about it. More important, this information is available to anyone, anywhere, which is what makes it so important to the HKVCA. Students, for example, can use it for research for their papers and teachers for background material.
With this in mind, we’ve recognized that providing educational material on our web site is very important to our mission of educating Canadians about the Battle of Hong Kong. Over 21% of Canadians speak French as their first language in the home, and yet almost none of the content of our web site is in French! I’m very pleased to tell you that Ontario has taken the initiative to begin translating key parts of our web site into French. We’ve hired a professional translator, and are funding the first batch of translations ourselves. Our initial target is the personal stories told by Hong Kong Veterans, and you can already see the results, with two personal accounts now translated and more to come soon. Our hope is that the other regions will chip in to support even more translation.
On a springtime note, our area reps are now beginning to plan their spring get-togethers! Gordon Coyne and Lori Atkinson-Smith are planning a June event for the West-Central area, Mitzi Ross and Melissa-Marie Cormier have begun working on a Northeast area luncheon, and Marilyn Morgan is working on an event for the Southwest area. Watch for the announcements and make your plans to attend!
I’ll let our area reps and our education chair tell you more below about what’s happening in Ontario.
Have a happy spring!
Report for NE Ontario
by C.R. McGuire
After several cancellations as a result of business trips, an illness, and a car accident, Melissa-Marie Cormier was finally able to meet with me a few weeks ago. I am pleased that she is now officially the Regional Representative for this area. She is the grand daughter of the late Reginald Kerr, RRC, and is enthusiastic to do what her busy schedule and demanding job will permit, to help the HKVCA. For those who do not know Melissa-Marie, I recommend you read her excellent contribution to the HKVCA web site. Go to its Home page, under the photograph of the Memorial Wall, click on “and more…”. At the right of the page that comes up is “Index of Topics”, click on “Tributes and Comments”. Her piece is the seventh [mine is the fifth], in which, among other things, she remembers her dear Grandfather, who she was fortunate to know so well.
After eleven years as the rep, Mitzi Ross took over the position from me last July, but due to health problems she has decided to step down. Mitzi will continue to help by arranging the Spring luncheon. I will also assist Melissa-Marie in any way I can and continue to do, as I have since 1978, everything I can to publicize our Veterans and their history and, ensure their sacrifices are “Never Forgotten”.
I did my fifteenth Remembrance Month exhibit for the Nepean Museum. This year’s topic concerned the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War. It was on display until April 2011. As I did for the exhibit I prepared in 2004 for the end of that war, because several Hong Kong veterans who remained in the Canadian Army served during the Korean War, I was able to have a section concerning them and their previous service in World War II. I also had my wreath on display except for Remembrance Day, when Ted Terry and I were using it.
I am happy to report that Ken Ewing, RRC and Eric Maloney, RRC are doing well. Reginald Kerr, WG has Alzheimer’s, but is being well cared for at the Perley Veterans Hospital.
I regret to inform Ottawa-area members that the Royal Canadian Legion's wreath outlet was closed down after over 60 years of operation, as a "cost cutting measure". Wreaths now must be ordered through a Legion Branch, well in advance of when you want it, the order is sent to Toronto and, at a substantially higher cost than we were able to procure them in the past. As I have always advised my members, after laying your wreath be sure to take it home with you rather than leave it for the Legion to store. If you take care of it, as I have, you will get years of use from it.
My theme for the Nepean Museum 2011 Remembrance Month exhibit will be appropriately to "Remember Canada's Involvement in the Defence of Hong Kong on its 70th Anniversary".
I have also been requested to prepare a second exhibit concerning the Royal Canadian Legion on its 90th Anniversary. Some readers may recall it was originally known as the British Empire Service League, when it was established in 1921.
If all goes as planned, Connie and I will be at the 2011 Reunion in Granby this August. I will bring some of my exhibits and hope to meet old and new members who will be attending. In the meantime, take care and safe travelling.
West Central Ontario:
Gordon Coyne, Area Representative
(905) 607-2367 gcoyne@sympatico.ca
Ken is back from ‘conquering’ Hong Kong, and mighty happy he made the effort. While there he participated in some of the ceremonies, and toured the battlefield sites. Fortunately, his daughter, Pam Newhouse, was able to accompany him, as well as grandson Jordan Newhouse and granddaughter Jill Newhouse. He has recovered his energy after these gruelling days, and is back to enjoying a quiet daily breakfast with his ‘cronies’ at Momma Rae’s Restaurant in Grimsby, Ontario. The New Year promises to hold more excitement for Ken, as there will be a 90th birthday to celebrate in April. He is also making plans to attend the Convention in August in Granby. To see pictures of Ken during his visit to Hong Kong, have a look at our website.
Gerry continues to struggle with problems with his eyes, and remains under active treatment with a specialist in Mississauga. The surgery he underwent in October has been a stopgap solution, which he hopes will come to a conclusion when he has more surgery in February. Despite this discomfort, he is continuing all his important activities, especially a daily trip to Timmers for lunch with his neighbour. We sincerely hope that the New Year will bring better days for Gerry and fewer long trips to his eye doctor.
Education Committee Report,
- Pat Turcotte:
Re the Teachers’ Zone: Jim Trick has done a great job reorganizing the Teachers’ Zone. He is also quite keen on making the TZ completely bilingual in the future, and has suggested to the BOD that the Education aspect of the HKVCA’s activity should be given a more significant role. There is some discussion of providing funds at the National level to have more of the Veterans’ stories translated.
Our French translator, Dominique Millette, has already provided two of the four stories to Jim, and they can be found on the Website, alongside the story in English by the same veteran. She is now working on the third story, and should have it ready shortly. Dominique has been most helpful beyond actually translating the stories, and she and Jim have reached a consensus regarding the approach to take in adding the stories in French to the total.
Re the International Military Tattoo in Hamilton, June 25 & 26:
Gordon Coyne, Area Rep. for West Central, is looking after dealing with our veterans’ participation at the Tattoo performances to be held on Saturday, June 25th and Sunday, the 26th. Because of the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Hong Kong, our Canadian soldiers’ role in that battle will be highlighted on both days. Ken Pifher and George MacDonell have been approached about being the Hong Kong veterans involved, and both have indicated they are ready to take part.
The Ontario Region will have a display booth set up at the Copps Coliseum on both days, and will need several volunteers to help us out. We would be responsible for setting up by 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 25th, and by noon Sunday on June 26th. The time involved would be about 3 hours. We would certainly appreciate hearing from members who could volunteer on one of those two days.
E-mail Gordon Coyne at gcoyne@sympatico.ca or Pat Turcotte at petsask@sympatico.ca if you can help.
Re the Banners for a Display situation: Bud Mann, the Area Rep. for the GTA, has been working very hard to complete a project we have initiated in order to develop three banners with appropriate pictures and information that will be used in any future display situations. Ken Skelton has provided the pictures. Our next commitment involves the Symposium at the Robarts Library’s Richard Charles Lee HK-Canada Centre in Toronto on March 31st. We have just learned that Bud expects to have all three banners ready for that event.
Re the Professional Development Day in Ottawa, Feb. 18th: Ian Doull and Gail Angel, two of our HKVCA members in Ottawa were able to set up a display table at the Professional Development Day held by the Ottawa – Carleton District School Board using materials and publications sent from the Toronto area to complete the information needed for the day. Ian has recently reported that the day went very well, and that there was much interest in the display. Many thanks to Ian and Gail, their participation in the event made it a success.
Re the March 31st Symposium: Mike will be meeting with Dr. Jack Leong on Monday, March 7th to discuss our involvement in the Symposium at the Robarts Library, Richard Charles Lee HK-Canada Centre. The focus of the Symposium will be Nathan Greenfield speaking about his new book, “The Damned”. In addition, George MacDonell and Vince Lopata will be speaking, and Nathan Greenfield’s book will be on display. We will have the opportunity to have a display table for HKVCA, which will involve as many of our publications and others materials that are current. Shelagh Purcell, and her daughter Megan, will bring copies of the family book, “A Hong Kong Diary Revisited - the Family Remembers” and assist in presenting the other materials in the display. The three banners discussed above should add an extra point of interest in what is being presented. HKVCA members should consider attending as the general public is invited.
Re the HKVCA Cross Canada Writing Contest: The number of copies of the Writing Contest in English and French, sent with an introductory letter as e-mail attachments, has now reached well over 400. The appropriate educators in all ten provinces and three territories have been contacted and comments already received have been quite favourable. For teachers who wish to have students enter at this stage, it’s not too late. The deadline is Friday, May 20, 2011. All the information about the Contest, and the participation of students can be found in the Teachers’ Zone on the HKVCA Website. The address is www.hkvca.ca Go to the Teachers’ Zone from the Home page, and looking for the heading “ Contests”.
Re the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Conference: Due to the initiative of Mike Babin and others, the HKVCA AB/SK Region made a presentation at the Saskatchewan Council of Social Science Teachers’ Conference in Moose Jaw, SK on Friday, March 4th. Samples of various items that we use in Ontario presentations were sent to Howard Jesse, the presenter, and some copies of the book, “A Hong Kong Dairy Revisited – the Family Remembers”, were sent along as well. The word from Howard is that the teachers were quite impressed with his presentation, and he plans to visit a number of schools in the Moose Jaw/Regina area, to add to the public’s awareness of the Hong Kong Story through the teachers and students in the classrooms.
Quebec Quotes ….
- Lucette Mailloux Muir, Regional Director
Greetings from the Quebec Region,
Another year closed and things have been quite busy since the beginning of the New Year with the upcoming convention and personal affairs. Spring is just around the corner as we smell and hear about the sugaring season. As I write it is raining very hard and very mild changing to freezing rain and a severe snowstorm warning is in effect for tomorrow. What a change in the next few hours!
We have been busy with the Convention. The mailing of the Invitation Kits is ready, last reservations have been completed and confirmed. All in all we are on time with the welcomed help from friends for our working sessions. More info is given in the Convention 2011 Report.
It is business as usual in the region. We have contacted some veterans and widows as part of our activities and held our year-end executive meeting. Unfortunately since our last newsletter report, we have lost more of our QC members: Edwina wife of Phil Doddridge, Lillian Brunet widow of Lucien, Judith Metallic widow of Patrick, Madeleine Bernard widow of Emile and Raoul Tremblay RRC. WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.
We are pleased to welcome many new members in our Quebec Hong Kong Family. Hopefully the trend will continue as we invite our members to ask their family members to join and support our cause for our Veterans.
That will be it at this time and don’t forget the Convention 2011. We are looking forward to seeing you then.
.^
Eastern Breezes…
- Emmie Flanagan, Regional Director
Hello from Belledune, NB, where we just had 42 cm. of snow fall in less than 12 hours. Looking on the bright side, we can still see out of our 2nd story windows and there are tulips waiting to bloom some ten feet down.
At the regular monthly meeting of Dec. 20, 2010, Belledune, NB Council accepted the motion to purchase 25 HKV grave markers (monument badge disc's) for our local Hong Kong Veteran's (from Belledune to Nash Creek, NB). It is anticipated all markers will be mounted between June and September 2011.
I’ve been working on obtaining information from all local HKV families in order to have these monument badge disc’s placed on their loved ones headstone. At first I thought it might be an arduous task but surprisingly it has brought a lot of joy to me and the many families who are so pleased to see their loved one being memorialized in such a unique way. When I found myself stuck on a name and could not find any relatives, I simply asked other HKV family members and they were able to direct me through the proper channels. For example, I had one individual who was born here but left shortly after the war. Sure enough after asking several families I was able to track his family to Niagara Falls, where he is buried. I mentioned this case to council and it was decided I should reach his family in Ontario, where they will sign the release to allow the disc placed on his headstone and then we will send the disc to them to have it mounted (hopefully they will send a picture upon completion).
As we all know, 2011 commemorates the 70th Anniversary of the "Battle of Hong Kong" and many of our "Royal Rifles of Canada" were from Northern New Brunswick and the Gaspe Coast. I am hoping other municipalities in the area will take up this cause to ensure all Hong Kong Veterans have a "Monument Badge Disc" on their headstone, if not this year, hopefully next year. My plan is to send a letter to each municipality urging them to consider doing what Belledune has so proudly done.
We found a very reputable Monument Company to create our HKV Memorial and a wonderful Artist who is working on the "Gander" statue. By the time the next newsletter arrives, I will have more information to share with you (i.e. the artist rendition and associated costs for the overall memorial). We are so thankful to the Veterans Affairs who will be offering $ help to all communities in Canada to honour our local heroes.
The New Brunswick Department of Education is currently in the loop with over seeing that the 10-lesson plan being incorporated through out all NB schools (French and English). We still have a way to go but I’m starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel (fingers crossed).
That’s it for now,
hope you all have a wonderful spring and may all your tulips bloom before the
middle of June.