Who I will be remembering this Remembrance Day

Sorry I have not posted in a while, I have been very busy with school. I thought I would make this post since it helps me reflect on those who have made me who I am today. This post will be about some of my family members that have fought in different wars. Some survived, others did not. I thank all of them for fighting for the freedom I have today. Some of the people I do not have a lot of information on and some do not have pictures, but I have put as much detail as I could find right now. If I find out more information, I will definitely update this post!

Boer War 

Francis Albert Day {Maternal Great-Great Grandfather} 1872-1947

This is Frank with my Pappy, Grant Day. I do not have a picture of him during the war.

Frank served in the Royal Artillery, specifically in the Boer War.

WWI 

Private Hiram William Nelson {Maternal 3rd Great Uncle} 1895-1917 

“Unit: Canadian Infantry (Manitoba Regiment)
Division: 52nd Battalion. 
A farmer by trade, he enlisted in the CEF on 25 April 1916 in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Son of Christian and Agnes Selena (nee Wright) Nelson of Central North River, Nova Scotia; brother of Private Rupert Peter NELSON, Royal Canadian Regiment, who also served- he was killed in action on 31 October 1917 and he, too, is remembered with honour at the Menin Gate Memorial”  (SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12042936#).

Rupert Peter Nelson {Maternal 3rd Great Uncle} 1891-1917

“A farmer by trade, he enlisted in the CEF on 20 May 1916 in Truro, Nova Scotia. He was killed in action during the Battle of Passchendaele.

Son of Christian and Agnes Selena (nee Wright) Nelson of Central North River, Nova Scotia; brother of Private Hiram William NELSON, 52nd Battalion, who also served-he was killed in action on 28 October 1917 and he, too, is remembered with honour at the Menin Gate Memorial” (SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12042960).

**NOTE HOW THE TWO BROTHER DIED 3 DAYS APART** 

Here is a picture of the memorial I got from Wikipedia

WWII

Walter Pandachuck {Paternal Great-Grandfather} 1920-1996

Walter Pandachuck served in the military in 1941 when he was 21 years old. {I am going to talk to my Grandpa to get more information about this, so stay tuned!}.

Walter Pandachuck

Allan Rupert Haddrell {Paternal Great-Grandfather} 1922-Present

My Great Grandpa Haddrell served in the Canadian Navy during WII, on a boat I am told is called a ‘Corvette’.

 

 

My great grandpa and grandma

Picture of a Corvette. Flower Class Corvette HMS Polyanthus, Source =www.oldships.org.uk, Author =Leidseplein Date =1943-09-

 

William Leonard Day {Maternal Great-Grandfather} 1917-1958

William was a Corporal in the military in WWII. Sadly, he died in 1958 from suicide due to PTSD.

The arrow is pointing at William

Francis John Day {Maternal 2nd Uncle} 1915-1941

Francis John Day served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. On July 4, 1941 he was killed in action over Belgium. He is buried in Kinrooi, Arrondissement Maaseik, Limburg, Belgium.

 

 

Johnny is in the middle

 

 

He is buried in Belgium

 

Here is what is written about the crash that killed him:

“99 RAF Squadron’s Vickers Wellington (#T2984) LN-B aircraft, crewed by six airmen, took flight from RAF Waterbeach, in Cambridgeshire, on a bombing operation over Essen, Germany. The Wellington is believed to have been shot down over enemy-held territory, crashing near Molenbeersel in Belgium. Three members of the aircrew survived the crash, but were taken POW; the other three aircrew perished in the crash.
The casualties of the crash were-
RCAF Sergeant Francis John DAY,
RAFVR Pilot Officer John Robert Leslie DUNN and
RAFVR Sergeant Spencer Ronald MAYOR.

One of the captured POW airmen, RCAF Sergeant Harry Malcolm ROBERTSON, died on 30 April 1942, after he was shot while trying to escape from a German prison camp at Weimar.

Son of Frank A. and Isabella B. Day of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; husband of Joan G. (née Chester) Day of Birmingham, Warwickshire, England.

Sergeant Day and his two best childhood friends all enlisted in the RCAF on the same day; training together, they became known as ‘the three Musketeers’. Sadly, the three young men-RCAF Sergeant Francis John DAY, RCAF Aircraftman 1st Class Gerald John ELIOTT and RCAF Sergeant Mervyn Samuel HUNT each lost their lives on active service during the war” (source: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15099753).

Vierl Rusell Bliss {Maternal 2nd Great Uncle} 1916-1987

Vierl was in the army during WWII.

My grandma wrote a book about our family history here is what she says, “He [Vierl] was fighting somewhere in Europe and his commander order[ed] him to sneak to the front line when it was dark and silence the German hiding by a wall. This meant he had to slit the throat of the German without any noise. He told [my] mom he was very worried but relieved when a Canadian [Aboriginal] told the commander he would do it because he was good at being quiet”.

Vierl Bliss in Uniform

Gilbert Bliss {Maternal 2nd Great Uncle} 1914-1971

Gilbert was in the Army in WWII.

Gilbert Bliss in Uniform

Rae Douglas Bliss {Maternal 2nd Great Uncle} 1918-1994

Rae was in the Army during WWII.

Rae Bliss in Uniform

Thank you for reading this post. Please, remember all those who fought for our freedom this Remembrance Day.

-Ariel

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