223 The Royal Canadian Legion MANITOBA & NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO COMMAND www.mbnwo.ca THOMAS, William Clarence PEACETIME When William was a young fellow right out of high school in Birtle, he was in Regina, where he had just been laid off from a clerking job. He was broke, out of a place to stay, and hungry. He saw this Royal Canadian Air Force recruiting poster, so he went to apply for a pilot’s position. His medical concluded that William was too blind. He was offered a ground crew position, so he joined up. After basic training in St. Jean, Quebec, William spent a year training as an Electrician Technician in Clinton, Ontario. He was posted to Gimli where he worked on T 33’s, the two-seater jet trainer. He also worked on CF100 fighter aircraft, Beech 18’s and DC-3’s. All in all, it was great fun, and William met many good friends. He served from November 1954, until he took his discharge in November 1957, and embarked on a university career. William earned his B.Ed. (Bachelor of Education) and M.Ed. (Masters of Education) degrees. THOMAS, William George “Bill” WWI &WWII Bill Thomas served in both World War I and World War II. Private William George Thomas enlisted in the Canadian Machine Gun Corp, #2, 1st Depot Battalion, MS, Canadian Expeditionary Force in Winnipeg on November 12, 1917. He served in England for eight months, then became ill. He recovered by the time armistice was signed. Bill received his discharge on December 27, 1918 in Winnipeg. He lived in the Hodgson area until enlisting in World War II. William George Thomas, Lance Corporal, enlisted in the Veterans Guard of Canada, 27th Company, in Winnipeg on February 8, 1943. Bill served in Canada at several German Prison Camps. Some of the places he was stationed at were Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, and Seebee, Alberta; Rossland Trail, and Bear Creek Post, British Columbia. Bill received his discharge on October 25, 1945 at Number 10 District Depot in Winnipeg. He returned to the farm in Hodgson and farmed until he passed away on October 25, 1985 at the age of 84. TOMCHUK, Harold “Harry” WWII Harry enlisted in April 1941 in Winnipeg. He took basic training in Portage la Prairie for three months and advanced training in Dundurn, Saskatchewan for about two months. He then went to Chilliwack, British Columbia to build an army camp in the bush. They had to clear the land before they could build. They were there about three months and then went overseas in December 1941 on a cattle boat. All they had to eat for seven days was boiled fish and tea. They landed in England and were stationed at Godalming for advance training. They were then sent to Gunsfold where he joined the 2nd Battalion of Royal Canadian Engineers. They built the Gunsfold Airdrome. It took six months to build. They started to build the St. Eval Airdrome near Cornwall, England in May 1943 which also took six months to build. While in England, he was the best man for Joe Topolnicki at his wedding. In England, he was stationed at Camberly, Bedford and Godalming. About five days after D-Day, he went to France. He was at Carpiquet Airport and Caen. He went all through France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany right to Berlin where he was when the war ended. Harry came back to Canada in the fall of 1945 and was discharged shortly thereafter.
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