107 The Royal Canadian Legion MANITOBA & NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO COMMAND www.mbnwo.ca DOAN, Archie Cecil WWII Archie was born on January 22, 1914, to Almon and Winnifred (Meakin) Doan in Neepawa, Manitoba. The family moved to Strathclair, and then to Elphinstone in 1922 where they received their education. Upon leaving school, he did odd jobs: winter camping while cutting wood, farming, stacking hay in the Riding Mountain National Park to feed buffalo, and harvesting in Strathclair for three years for several farmers. In 1938, they sold their horses and bought a two-ton truck and then was employed in the trucking business until he joined the armed forces in July 1941. Trooper Archie Doan enlisted with the 12th Manitoba Dragoons of the Canadian Army on July 10, 1941. The 12th Manitoba Dragoons was an armoured car regiment, which included training in radio, gunnery, map reading, explosives, mechanics, driving, etc. While he was stationed at Camp Borden, Ontario, Japan invaded Pearl Harbour and the regiment was moved to Vancouver Island to guard that coast. After spending two years there, they moved back across Canada, stopping in Winnipeg for a week to visit their families before being sent overseas, first to Halifax, NS then to England. After two and a half years in England, the invasion of Normandy took place and six weeks later the regiment was moved to Normandy. On crossing the English Channel, Archie took an attack of acute appendicitis and was the first off the boat on the shores of Normandy. He was operated on in Normandy and then returned to England for convalescence. About six months later, he returned to the continent by air. He saw action in Holland, Belgium and Germany. After the war, he worked for the Parks Department at Riding Mountain National Park until his retirement in 1978. He married his wife, Dora Dennis on August 15, 1950 and they lived in the Riding Mountain-Kelwood area. On December 31, 1978, they retired to the village of Riding Mountain. He was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion in Kelwood and Neepawa. Archie passed away on January 8, 2008 at his home in Riding Mountain and was buried in the Riding Mountain Cemetery. DRAYSON, C. Merv WWII Merv was born in Neepawa, Manitoba on February 2, 1924. He enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Winnipeg on March 31, 1943 and served in Canada during World War II. He was a pilot grad on October 19, 1944 in Vulcan, Alberta and to reserve training in January 1945. Sergeant Merv Drayson was discharged on January 9, 1945. He was married to Marjorie and was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion Neepawa Branch 23 for 65 years from 1954 to 2019. Merv passed away in 2019.
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