97 The Royal Canadian Legion MANITOBA & NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO COMMAND www.mbnwo.ca HILLE, Harold J. E. WWII Harold was born on July 24, 1918 in the MacGregor area, son of Walter and Catherine Hille. Walter was four when he came to Canada in 1896 from Germany. They grew up as farmers in hard times. Harold finished grade eight and besides farming did some carpentry. When war broke out Harold signed up as PPCLI infantry, his two brothers joined the Signal Corps. When they signed up, they were told to drop the ‘e’ from Hille so they would sound more English. If the Nazis caught them, they would be shot on the spot for being a “traitor to the Father Land”. He started training on January 13, 1940 and sailed for England in May. In England, they continued their training and he was promoted on June 1, 1943. He was sent to Sicily on July 22, 1943 and just four days later he was shot dead taking the town of Agira. These Canadians had marched and fought farther in the campaign than any other formation in the Eighth Army. He was buried at the Canadian War Cemetery in Agira, Italy. HNATIUK, Michael “Mike” WWII Mike enlisted in the RCAF on October 15, 1942. He took his basic training at Brandon, Manitoba for six weeks. Then, he was transferred to #7 Equipment Depot in Winnipeg until May 1943. Also, he took a course in Diesel Engineering while there. After this training, they were formed into a Construction Maintenance Unit. He went to Armstrong, Ontario for two weeks. Then, he went back to Winnipeg for a short time and then on to Virden and Rivers, Manitoba. In the fall of 1944, he was sent to Watson Lake in the Yukon. This was a staging base where the Canadians and Americans transferred fighter planes to Russia. He looked after the Power House at Watson Lake Air Base. When the war ended, Mike was still there. He got his discharge on October 24, 1945 and resided in Winnipeg. HOBDEN, Alice WWII Alice joined the Canadian Women’s Army Corps at Military District #10 in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1943. This unit took their basic training at Vermilion, Alberta.
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