Thomas Pitt was born January 12, 1931 in London, Ontario. He grew up there against the backdrop of the Second World War, watching his older brother and father go off to war.  Tom stayed home with his mother and sister, and in 1945 he was able to greet his brother and father on their homecoming.  Tom made the decision to enlist in the Canadian Forces in 1951, choosing Signals.  It was the height of the Cold War by this time, and Tom deployed to West Germany early in his career, serving alongside NATO forces, and he was later sent to South Korea as a UN peacekeeper.  Ted spent a year in each location, and in 1955 he returned to Canada and received his honourable discharge.  His time in the military was not yet complete though, as he stayed in the reserve forces in Signals, and maintained his connection to the Air Cadets in London.