Some Heroes take to the skies in all the bravado of youth and with a dauntless showcase of courage take on all comers...others sit behind a desk and plan out the tactics and strategies to train men who will lead armies to success....and some heroes do both. This is the story of 2nd Lt. George Howsam from the Royal Flying Corps and Vice Air Marshall and Director of Training from the Royal Canadian Air Force.
My sincere apologies for the mothers out there from Canada and the US as this episodes is being posted one week late. I wrote this for Mother's Day and well...that was a week ago! For those listeners in the UK...this is really bloody late! However, it is a story that resonates for mothers across the combatant nations and touches on their perspective on a day that can be so happy...or so sad at the same time. Happy Mothers's Day...belatedl.
There is an auld adage...some soldiers never die, they just fade away. Very true...I have seen lots of fading soldiers in my research of the men of the 116th Battalion. This story is not of one of them. This is the story of a man who rose up from a 17 year old Private to be come Mayor of Canada's Largest city (ok..2nd at the time but who's counting?) This is the story of Lieutenant/Mayor Ralph Carrette Day.
Standing on the edge of the roadway, politely clapping while the procession of aging veterans walk by...one's mind can turn to consider who were these men? What did they experience over there? And who were they marching for? This is the story of four brothers...two who survived the war and two who did not. This is the story of the Kift Brothers of Cannington.
Every war has a first...the first battle, the first victory, the first loss...the first to die will always be bookended by the last. For this battalion, the first Officer to falls is not listed anywhere on the Library and Archives Canada website. He is not listed on the Canadian Virtual War Memorial...however his death was not forgotten by his brethren and Torontonians back in 1916...and with this story we will ensure he no longer remains forgotten. Remember him. Lt John Egerton Vaughan
If there was a man who I would like to shake hands with, look into his eyes and say..."Its' going to be ok." it will be with Lt. Col. Samuel Simpson Sharpe. He was the founding commanding officer of the 116th Battalion. Scores of officers and private soldiers chose to join his battalion...because of him. He cared for the well being of his men...and it may be said he cared too much. This is the tragic story of his life and his far to early death.
One can discover far more than you think when you take a drive out into the country. If you look close enough, you can just discover a true Canadian war hero. This is the story of a twice decorated 20 year old from rural Central Ontario, Lieutenant Bob Hollidge. It is a story of a man who could easily have been the inspiration for Sylvester Stallone's John Rambo. Enjoy his story and make sure your Remember him!
This time it's personal...a photograph taken on the eve of a soldier's departure to England and then onto France. It was a picture taken of a father holding the recently born son...the boy whom he would never come to know. The look in the man's eyes said it all. The picture was being taken not for him to remember his son when he was 'over there'...rather it was taken for his son to remember him. This is the story of my great grandfather and his son...my grandpa.
February is Black History Month - in honour and recognition this biography profiles one of the young black men who fought and served in the front lines of the war. Private Gordon Douglas Brown was a machine gunner with the 116th. This is his important story.
This is the story of an unknown massacre...the virtual destruction of 2 companies of soldiers...all done in a matter of minutes mere weeks before the end of the war. This is also the story which led the author and presenter on the journey of discovery and remembrance that he is on....and by that you are joining him on.
Not all casualties and deaths attributed the Great War were incurred at the end of a bayonet, or from shell fire and rifle fire. Tragically, while the roar of the guns drew silent on Nov 11th the war continued to rage on unabated in the minds of many of the participants. This is the story of one of these damned and damaged heroes. This is the story of Lieutenant Charles Coombes.
When the men returned home from the war and the years passed by, when they did get together and reunite each meeting was marked by fraternity, a few handshakes, a couple beers and singing of the auld war songs. Many of these were created by the subject of this biography...Corporal Jack Ayre of the Dumbells.
This is his story...and how he put smiles on the faces of so many men over so many years!
In an obscure cemetery just west of Toronto, one of Canada's fifth highest scoring air Ace rests in obscurity. He was arguably one of the most efficient and effective airmen to ever take to the skies he also happens to be someone almost no Canadian nor student of the Great War has ever heard of. This is the story of Captain Alfred Clayburn Atkey.
In this story I take you into the room where the Officer in Command of a battalion has to write home to the families of 37 men who died in the "successful operation". The operation was a full battalion level trench raid on July 23, 1917. The soldier whose family was being written to was Corporal Orren John Congdon. This is his story.
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As the seconds ticked down to 11am on the 11th month of the year 1918...not all soldiers were happy that hostilities were about to end. This is the story of one of those lads...it is based on the perspective of a read Canadian soldier as he stood outside Mons when the war ended.
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