107 The Royal Canadian Legion www.mbnwo.legion.ca JENKINS, Frederick McKone “Mac” WWII Mac was born on May 20, 1916, to Fred and Frances (McKone) Jenkins in the RM of Rosedale. He helped on the farm in Kelwood and then went to Ontario to work in the mines. In September 1941, he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was stationed in Brandon, Manitoba for training and was then posted to Gander, Newfoundland where he remained for a couple of years. He was then sent to Fort St. John. Mac hauled heavy equipment on the Alaska highway to places north, such as Watson Lake. It was on the train to Fort St. John that he met his wife, Patricia Clarkson, who was on leave from the Army at the time. They were married on June 7, 1946, in Fort St. John, right after she received her discharge. They then travelled to Winnipeg so Mac could receive his discharge, before going to Kelwood where he worked for a few years. They eventually went to Drayton Valley, Alberta and Mac worked for the Flint Rig Company for the next 21 years. He passed away there on November 8, 1993, and was buried in Riverview Cemetery in Drayton Valley. JONES, Raymond William “Bill” WWII Bill was born on June 7, 1924, to Reg and Eveline (Ballinger) Jones in England. The family immigrated to Canada about 1928 and settled in Brookdale. He married his wife, Isabel Rose Winslow, on July 29, 1947, and they spent their lives in Brookdale. Bill worked for Lou Mikkelson until December 1, 1941, when he joined the army at the age of seventeen. He took basic training at Fort Osborne Barracks in Winnipeg and was at Camp Borden, Ontario and Dundurn, Saskatchewan before going overseas in October 1942. At Woking, England, Bill took three months wireless training, then transferred to ‘A’ Company, Fourth Princess Louise Dragoon Guards. They were preparing for the invasion of Sicily, at Kirkintilloch, Scotland. After landing in Sicily, the first engagement came three days later at LeonForce. They fought their way across Sicily and Bill was in the first armoured car that landed on the toe of Italy. The F.P.L.D.G. fought its way up the Mediterranean coast. In 1944, Bill’s outfit was involved with the breakthrough of the Gothic Line in central Italy. Bill came down with a case of malaria, and when shipped to the hospital, the first nurse he encountered was Nellie Harburn. He spent a month at the rehab hospital in Naples. On recovery, Bill was transferred to a unit on the Adriatic coast, near Barrie. This unit proceeded up the Adriatic coast, being the first outfit into Ravenna. Three days later, during brutal fighting for a little town called Goda, Bill was taken prisoner on December 13, 1944. There were very few of the unit left. On removing his wireless from his backpack, Bill found that a shell had gone through it. That is why he had been able to receive messages but not send them. continued . . .
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