Diegel, Ralph

Ralph Diegel was born October 27, 1926 in Ferris, Ontario, just south of North Bay.   He had been in the Sea Cadets in high school, so when the war came he opted for the Royal Canadian Navy.  Initial training took place in Thunder Bay, and from there he was shipped down to HMCS Cornwallis in Halifax.  He would be assigned to the HMCS Sans Peur, a converted yacht that took part in the Battle of the Atlantic.  As such, it was Ralph’s and the crew’s job to guard the merchant ships that made up the convoys, ensuring that vital supplies and war materiel made it to England.  Along the way they dealt with all the dangers of the time:  the threat of U-boats, heavy weather, seasickness, and tedium and exhaustion.  As the war in the Atlantic was winding down, Ralph was shipped to the west coast, ready to play a role in the ongoing war against Japan.  They were on their way to Hawaii when they learned of the dropping of the atomic bombs and the end of the war. With that they returned to Victoria and Ralph was demobilized in short order.  He returned to Ontario, settling in North Bay where he married and raised a family.  He also joined the Legion and was active in the community and Remembrance Day-related ceremonies.  Ralph Diegel was interviewed by Zach Dunn in March 2024, and Zach was kind enough to share this interview with us.  Ralph can also be seen on Zach’s channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8V_fFKALw65aPDC7UWJ0qg.