Bill Fraser hails from New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, where he was born in 1940. His father and uncles served in the Second World War, and Bill would follow them into the service, albeit in a very different time. Bill was part of the Canadian Forces during the Cold War; he joined the RCAF out of
Les Mitelman is a Crestwood grandfather; his grandson Liam Stern was in Grade 8 at the time this interview was completed. Les was born in Tarnopol, Poland on July 21, 1938, so he was only a baby when the war began, so growing up he had to learn the unspeakable and horrible lessons the Shoah
George Brewster was born April 5, 1923. He grew up in New Brunswick, the son of a Great War veteran who had enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps. After the war his father worked for the railroad, managing to keep food on the table even during the difficult days of the Great Depression, a time
This past weekend the Sr Girls Prep Basketball Team travelled to Montreal to participate in the Ecole Secondaire Saint-Laurent annual Showcase. The entire weekend was physically demanding for every member of the team. Our Lady Lions came in as the showcase favourites and they did not disapoint winning each game with a margin of 24
Stuart Crawford was born on March 2, 1922, in Kingston, Ontario. He had three brothers, and the boys all grew up playing sports and musical instruments, and they shared the same Kingston Whig Standard paper route, passed from one brother to the next. Stuart’s family was very close, and with his parents’ sacrifices they made
Lara Jennings was born and raised in Grimsby, Ontario, and lived a sound childhood. She attended a plethora of high schools prior to graduation and deciding to pursue a military path. Jennings studied and graduated from Engineering at RMC prior to her choice of field in the military, which was the airforce. Beginning with regular bootcamp, she
Bob Farquarson hails from the Canadian Prairies; he was born on March 1, 1923, on a reservation in Alberta, where his father was the government stockman. Bob’s early years were spent on the Prairies, right in the middle of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. He recalls the conditions drove his father to bankruptcy
Crestwood’s Grade 10 class traveled to Ottawa for a jam-packed three days of fun, friendship and first-hand encounters with topics from their Civics and Canadian History studies. Our first stop on Wednesday took students to the Canadian War Museum. The striking building on the Ottawa River was designed by architect Raymond Moriyama to convey a
Col. Aaron Magan joined the American Army in 1991, following his undergraduate ROTC at Western Kentucky University. He went into the Army Corps of Engineers and soon found himself rising through the ranks. He attended a series of schools and courses in the American military, all the while furthering his training. They included: the Ranger
This week at Crestwood, we celebrated multiple awards and achievements from our many talented students. Congratulations to all! Georgia Gardner won an award of merit for playwriting from the National Theatre School Drama Festival. Armin Selzner earned the Silver Duke of Edinburgh award. He committed an average of an hour a week for an entire year
Gordon B. Smith was born in the east end of Toronto, not far from the Don Jail. He lost one brother when he was growing up in that neighbourhood, to a household accident. Gord attended Eastern Commerce, but he didn’t graduate, instead entering the work force. When the war came, Gord’s remaining older brother enlisted
Swimming The swim team had an excellent meet last Wednesday at the Markham Pan Am Centre. 62% of all races swum were personal best times, which is amazing at this point in the season. Swimmers that swam a perfect day were Martin Chang, Maggie Funnell, Matthew Laslop, Thomas Li, Jack Magan, Will Magan, Megan Pearlman,
Gerry Foyle served in the Canadian Forces from the 1950s to the 1990s, building a career during the period that corresponded to Canada’s “Golden Age” of foreign policy and peacekeeping. Gerry joined up in the 50s, still a teenager, when Canada was involved in the Suez Crisis, and he went on to supply the Canadian
Karl Wagar served in the Canadian Forces during the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. Karl hails from the town of Deseronto, in Prince Edward County; he enlisted at the suggestion of a veteran he met at the local Legion, recalling that the decision set him on a better life path. He boarded that jet airplane
Charles Dayton was born in the Prairies, but his family moved to Vancouver when he was a baby, and that is where he would grow up. When he finished high school in 1941, he joined the airforce, and he eventually became a navigator. With the war underway, Charles was stationed in many areas in Canada
Major Andrea Keeping grew up in the small farming community Russell, Manitoba and entered the University of Manitoba with the intention of studying to be an architect. Instead, she would end up finishing her education at Kingston’s Royal Military College and embark on a career that has seen her deployed in support roles to Afghanistan,
Major Dawe joined the Canadian Forces a little later than the average recruit, making the big decision when she turned 30. After initial training, she focused on the logistical and personnel side of the military. In this regard she was deployed to Afghanistan, where she was stationed at Kandahar Airfield. While there she was responsible
Andy Reti was born July 16, 1942 in Budapest, Hungary. He is a child survivor from the Shoah. Andy’s father did not survive those terrible years: he was taken to a forced labour battalion and later murdered in Auschwitz Birkenau. Andy, along with his mother and grandparents, survived the horrors of the war through good
Carl Barker is a lifelong Mainer. Born June 26, 1928, he grew up against the backdrop of the Great Depression, which he recounts through some fascinating specific memories, including that he slept in a drawer. As his father was a grocer, the family did not go hungry, but Carl remembers that he did not see
Major Daniel Matheson is a current member of the Canadian Forces, who hails from Indian Harbour, Nova Scotia, a small fishing community just outside Halifax. He joined the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in 1997 right out of High School under the Regular Officer Training Plan and attended Royal Military College in St Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC and
The name Tichelman, profile that was high arrested girl killer that was call is easily being a household-name, and not a name that is being coated softly. The main reason? It just happened one night, on an enchanted November evening in Santa Cruz, Florida, over a boat day with 51-year old Google government Hayes.
Mr. David Jacobs was born in Tomaszów, Poland. He grew up within the small town, and soon joined his father in working at their family tailoring shop. At age 18, when the war broke out, Mr. Jacobs was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp, where he served as a slave labourer. Mr. Jacobs traveled across Europe
Michael Boyer is a veteran born in Toronto, into a big family. Fairly well-to-do, Mr. Boyer and his family were less affected by the depression than many. He joined the army at a young age and became part of the Fourth Field Royal Canadian Artillery. Travelling to Europe, Mr. Boyer fought along allied forces such
Last week the Grade 6 students enjoyed a visit from The Scientists in the school as they explored the science behind powered and unpowered flight. They further discovered the properties of air and the principles of flight through hands on group activities. These science experts guided the students through the forces of flight by coordinating parachute drops, measuring human
Lt.-Col. Clint Mowbray is an active member of the Canadian Forces, serving with the RCAF in the Air Sea Rescue division. He has served all over Canada and has been involved in numerous rescue missions across the country; he has also served overseas in Afghanistan as part of the ISAF force. Lt.-Col. Mowbray was stationed
Paul-Henri Rips was born on October 23, 1929 in Antwerp, Belgium. He lived with his father Isadore, mother Faja and sister Sina. Paul described his years before the war as his “golden childhood”. There were mutterings of what was to come but his childhood was pleasant. On May 10th 1940 Belgium was invaded by Germany.
George Lysy was born February 1, 1916 on a farm near Nove Zamky in Czechoslovakia. From an early age, George worked on the family’s dairy farm. He graduated from the College of Agriculture before the war. In 1938, when the Hungarians took over the region, George applied for a farmer’s visa to Canada but was
Sorrell Gwartzman’s father Harold Rubin fought in the Canadian forces during WW2, and this interview is a record both of her experiences growing up in Canada during the war, and of his actions overseas. While her father enlisted and went on to be a member of the RCAF’s Precision Squad who was awarded the DFC,
