179 www.on.legion.ca ONTARIO COMMAND HIGGINSON, George George was born in London, England, on October 7, 1876. At the age of 24, he married and in 1907 immigrated with his wife and daughter to Chatham, Ontario. He enlisted in the Army (Regular Force) on September 17, 1915 with the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force and arrived in England in June 1916 where he was transferred to the Royal Canadian Regiment and then to the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. His regiment was assigned to Ypres and was subjected to a gas attack along Menin Road. He became a machine gunner and participated in his first battle at Courcelette. In 1917, he participated in the First Battle of Arras (Vimy Ridge) then moved to Ypres and fought at the Battle of Passchendaele. Private Higginson was wounded at Passchendaele and spent five months in hospital then returned to his unit and took part in the Battle of Amiens (La Somme). He participated in the Battle of Scarp, Battle of Canal du Nord, and Battle of Sambre. In November 1918, they were advancing on Mons when armistice was declared. On March 19, 1919, he was demobilized in Ottawa and returned to his family. George died on March 23, 1966, at the age of 89. He is buried in the Veterans area of Woodlawn Cemetery in London, Ontario. HILLIER, David James “Dave” Dave was born in Toronto, Ontario on March 11, 1953. He joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1971 in Toronto and was sent to Cornwallis for basic training. He was then sent to CFB Borden to complete his trade as an Aero Engine Technician. In 1972, he was assigned to 417 Squadron and was transferred to Cold Lake, AB where he did aircraft maintenance. In 1975, he got his release from the Regular Force and transferred to the 400 Squadron Reserve Force. He was sent to Flight Engineer School in Trenton. In 1976, he became a member of the Search and Rescue Team with 400 and 424 Squadrons, alternating between Toronto and Trenton. At the end of 1982, he ended his flying career and transferred to maintenance as a Squadron Aircraft Maintenance Superintendent and duplicated this role in 1989 with the 411 Squadron. He ended his career in the service in 1990. During his nineteen years of service, Dave did two tours in Baden, Germany, two tours in the Arctic, and lived on a Canadian Air Force Base in every province in Canada. Although retired from the forces, he continued to serve and eventually became Veterans’ Service Officer at Branch 170 in Uxbridge. He served until his death on April 27, 2020. HILL, Louis James Louis was born on January 1, 1923, in St. Thomas, Ontario, to Harold and Flora Hill. He attended Kitchener Collegiate and in 1942, at the age of nineteen, he enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force (Regular). He earned his pilot’s wings and Officer’s Commission and was trained as a flying instructor. After the war, he went back to school briefly and then re-enlisted and took advanced training to train flight instructors. Louis married Elaine (Hagen) and they raised three children, Peter, Wendy and Linda. He helped set up Canada’s first training program for military jet pilots, and led the T33 Silver Stars, the RCAF’s first aerobatic team. He commanded the 441 Fighter Squadron at 1 Wing, Marville, France (NATO) and the operational training unit on jet fighters in Chatham, NB. He also served at 4 ATAF in Ramstein, Germany (NATO). He retired as a Lt. Col. in 1969 and settled on a hobby farm near St. Agatha and served as Regional Councilor for Wilmot Township. Louis led a restoration team of the Canadian Harvard Association and was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion New Hamburg Branch 532 for 22 years. Louis passed away on May 8, 2001 and was laid to rest in Memory Gardens, Breslau.
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