355 www.on.legion.ca ONTARIO COMMAND TALES, William William was born on April 5, 1893, in Yorkshire, England, to James and Phoebe (Wright) along with three sisters, Elsie, Annie, and Grace. William enlisted in the Army (Regular Force) in New Hamburg on November 17, 1915, with the 111th Battalion. He did ten months of basic training before his unit sailed from Hamilton to England. He was transferred to the 18th Battalion in France and to the trenches in Passchendaele where, on November 13, 1916, he was struck with shrapnel on his right hand and left arm, taken to the Princess Christian Hospital in Engelfield. He earned three chevrons for injuries, also the Military Medal for bravery in the field. The hand healed perfectly but lost 50% use of the arm. He was sent to Canada aboard the HS Araquaya as being unfit for further military service and discharged on September 9, 1918. He married Florence and they raised three children: James Albert, Lawrence, and Florence Grace. He was a founding member, a Past President, and a life member with 52 years of continuous service with the Royal Canadian Legion Galt Branch 121. He served as Zone C2 Commander in 1926-28. William passed away on January 10, 1980, and is laid to rest in the Mountview Cemetery in Galt. THOMAS, Leonard Edwin Frederick Leonard was born on June 7, 1904, in London, Ontario to Bert and Daisy Thomas. He was married with 7 children when he enlisted in the Canadian Army (Regular Force), Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps. on May 31, 1940, at the age of 35. He was given the rank of Corporal. After seven months of training, he was sent to Aldershot, England. While there, he was fortunate to be able to visit family in Watford, England. Due to the long time in England, he formed a baseball team with his fellow mates because he loved baseball so much and it helped to keep up the morale. He also had a chance to attend Oxford for an accounting course which was beneficial when he returned after the war. In 1944, he was with the second wave to land on Juno Beach in France. He returned to England in 1945 due to illness and eventually returned to Canada on the Hospital Ship and was discharged on June 1, 1945. He and his family settled in London and later he joined the Army Reserve at Wolseley Barracks in London where he eventually earned his 12-Year Long Service Medal. At that time, he held the rank of WO1. Leonard passed away on August 10, 1964. THOMS, Ernest William Ernest was born in Ottawa on March 1, 1924. He served in the Canadian Armed Forces during World War II from July 7, 1941 to November 29, 1945, in Canada, England, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. He attained the rank of Lance Corporal. He worked at the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (1945-1949) and the Ottawa Police Force (1949-1951). Ernest also served in the Canadian Army Reserve Forces from 1946-1951. He attained the rank of Corporal, Sargeant and 2nd Lieutenant. In 1951, he re-enlisted into the Canadian Army Regular Forces in the Canadian Army Provost Corp. He was posted to Fredericton, NB in January 1952 to 1955. In August 1955, they moved back to Ottawa while Lt Thoms served in Korea as part of the United Nations Forces, as second in command. Returning to Canada, Lt Thoms was posted to Camp Shilo, MB where he worked as an instructor at the Canadian Provost School and attained the rank of Captain. In 1960, Capt. Thoms was an instructor in Halifax. From August 1961 to August 1965, Capt. Thoms worked at Headquarters Central Command, Oakville, Ontario. He was posted in August 1965 to June 1968 to Soest, West Germany, 4th Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (NATO). He was married to D. Anita Thoms from 1947 until his death in 1982.
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