LEST WE FORGET 359 WALTON, Thomas Alfred “Tom” WWII Thomas Alfred Walton was born in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1923. He grew up in Hamilton and was a commercial artist with Reid Press in Hamilton when he enlisted in the RCAF in 1941 and trained as radio operator for 2.5 years. Tom trained in Guelph, Ontario, in Canada and in Bournemouth, England on Tiger Moths bi-planes for radio training graduating to the Wellington (Wimpy) bomber. After the Wellington, he flew in the Halifax Bomber and then the Lancaster. His rank when posted to England was Flight Sergeant. He flew missions out of various bases with 428 Ghost Squadron in England with his main base being Middleton St. George. Tom had 21 missions, some of the more memorable to Gelsenkinkin Oil Refinery, Dresden, Gauge Factory, and Chemnitz in Germany. One of the more memorable events occurred on a mission to Hagen, Germany at the beginning of December 1944 where icing caused their Lancaster to crash and the crew having to bail out. Tom landed safely in France in the allied controlled area and with the assistance of the French people and later the US Army returned to England in early December. He said the French people were very helpful and accommodating. He did not return to his base prior to his family receiving a telegram that he was missing after the mission. Happily, a few days later upon his return to base, his family received a follow-up telegram on December 7 and later a letter dated December 11, 1944 that he had returned safely to his unit.Within a few days he was back in the air once again flying missions over Europe and Germany. Tom was promoted and finished his service with the rank of Flight Officer. As a graphic artist, Tom was very talented. Being a graphic artist, when serving overseas he painted nose art on the planes, a common practice by air crews during the war. His work on aircraft Nose Art has made him quite well known in the field, his Lancaster being “Sugars Blues”, featured a redhead in a green dress on the pilots side of the plane and a Ghost holding a bomb “for 428 Ghost Squadron” on the opposite side of the nose. Sugars Blues was a well known RCAF Lancaster and numerous photos are in the archives. A copy of the nose art is painted on a replica nose section of a Lancaster on exhibit at the Nanton Bomber Command Museum of Canada in Nanton, Alberta. After returning home in 1946, Tom met and married Millie, his wife of 65 years. Tom returned to his graphic artist career and he and Millie had two sons. He later moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, to pursue his graphic arts career, eventually retiring and then traveling with his wife, enjoying holidays to the southern US. Tom and his son moved to Elliot Lake, Ontario, where he enjoyed the fishing and being in a smaller center experiencing all the wildlife and being close to nature. WARD, Sidney WWII Sidney was born in Saskatchewan. He served with the Regina Rifle Regiment from 1941 to 1946. He lost one leg from a land mine in 1944. He was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion Foam Lake Branch 16. Sidney passed away in 1992.
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