LEST WE FORGET 283 NIMEGEERS, Michael Andrew WWII Michael Andrew Nimegeers was born on April 9, 1904 in Scheldewindeke, Belgium, and immigrated to Canada in April 1910 with his parents, Prosper and Julianna (VanDeSype), brothers George and Michael and sisters Mary, Agnes, Gabrielle and Susanna. They lived on their homestead west of Radville, later farmed by their grandson, Robert Nimegeers. After settling in Canada, they had three more sons, Raymond (died as a young boy), Leon (died in infancy) and Walter. Michael married Marguerite Verbeurgt on September 30, 1930. They farmed and had four children: Robert, Melvin, Shirley and Diane. In December 1939, Michael enlisted with the South Saskatchewan Regiment (SSR). Just a month later, he received a compassionate discharge upon the sudden passing of his wife in January 1940. After settling, the four children, Robert (age 8), Melvin (6), Shirley (4) and Diane (1) at the St. Joseph’s Convent in Forget, Saskatchewan, Private Michael Nimegeers reenlisted in November 1941. He was on active duty with the home guard in Britain until the start of the Normandy campaign. He was captured at the Battle of Verrieres Ridge on July 20, 1944 and was held as a German Prisoner of War at Stalag 8B in Cieszyn, Poland. He was forced to work in a coal factory for ten months. On January 19, 1945, as the Russians approached the camp, the Germans evacuated the prisoners and marched them west for three months, across the Sudetes Mountains, heading toward Munich. Private Michael Nimegeers was liberated by Allied forces on April 24, 1945 and returned home to Canada after the war. Michael returned to the family farm, where he worked until his passing on May 29, 1971 at the age of 67. He was buried at the Ceylon Cemetery in Ceylon, Saskatchewan. NOBLE, George S. WWII & PEACETIME George was born in 1923 in Neville, Saskatchewan. He enlisted with the Royal Canadian Navy and served as Chief Petty Officer in Italy, the Pacific and the Mediterranean. He was torpedoed at least twice while serving in the Mediterranean. He served for a total of 25 years. He received the 1939-1945 Star, the Atlantic Star, the Africa Star, the Italy Star, the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal, the War Medal 1939-1945, the Korea Medal and the United Nations Service Medal (Korea). George passed away in 2007.
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