333 www.on.legion.ca ONTARIO COMMAND RYAN, Benedict J. “Benny” Benny was born on December 20, 1918, in Newcastle, New Brunswick. He joined the Army on September 15, 1939, completed his basic training in Petawawa then was sent off to England as part of the 5th Regiment. Assigned to the south coast near Dover where a German Invasion might be expected, the defenders were poorly equipped and had little ammunition. At the beginning of July 1944, he took part in the Normandy Invasion, fought in the battle to take Caen and to close the “gap” at Falaise. Benny moved with the 2nd Division to Dunkirk then Dieppe and through to Antwerp and Nijmegen for the winter of 1944. In the spring of 1945, Benny was part of the invasion of Germany and in July 1945 he was shipped back to England and then Canada in August. He was discharged in Fredericton on September 15, 1945. In 1943, he married June Pace and raised seven children. Benny was a member of Richmond and District Legion Branch 625 for 25 years before he passed away on October 4, 1997. SCHAEFER, Lorne Alfred Lorne was born in New Hamburg, Ontario on May 10, 1915, to Charles William and Emma E. (Ruthig). He had four siblings: Grace (Klassen), Dolores (Klassen), Marie Schaefer andWalter. Lorne served in the Royal CanadianAir Force (Regular Force) with 403 Squadron during World War II and trained as a Radar Mechanic. He was stationed at the RCAF Base in Clinton, Ontario. He was discharged in March 1945, with the rank of Corporal. He married Elaine Marie (Hammer) and together they raised four children: Mary Elizabeth (Steeves), Dr. John Charles, Thomas Lorne and Gail Irene (Krampien). Lorne was an inspector with National Defence. He was also one of the fifty Charter Members of The Royal Canadian Legion New Hamburg Branch 532 and was a member for 24 years. He died on September 22, 1966, and is laid to rest in the Riverside Cemetery in New Hamburg. SANDHAM, Jack M. Jack was born on December 13, 1913, in Toronto, Ontario and he moved to Hamilton, Ontario after getting married to Olive Negus in 1941. On July 20, 1942, he joined the Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps and served in Canada, England and Continental Europe during World War II. After he was discharged on November 15, 1945, he had a florist delivery service then worked for Imperial Oil as a tanker truck driver. After retirement from Esso, he worked for the Red Cross in Hamilton. Jack would never discuss the war and as a result of it, he suffered terrible nightmares until his death on May 1, 1993.
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