My dad, known as Larry during the war, was a flying instructor during WW2. He did not go overseas. He often said being up in a plane teaching an 18 year old to fly was dangerous in its own right! He trained with his three best friends, but at war’s end, he was the only one left. My parents married in 1943. There was no money for a wedding gown or time for a long celebration. He loved to fly, but my mother didn’t want him to continue after the war, as she said she had worried for years every time he went up, so he hung up his wings when it was all over.
My sister Kathleen was born in May of 1945. I’ve often wondered what a couple thinks about when they are expecting a new life, but are still embroiled in a world war. They wouldn’t have known VE Day would happen just three days prior to her birth.
My mom was very proud of my dad and believed he could do anything. In the 70s we flew to Britain on a 747 and she told everyone aboard that if something happened to the pilots, my dad could step in! Needless to say, my dad was relieved that we landed safely at Heathrow, knowing the control panel of a Tiger Moth or Cessna Crane was a tad different from a 747! It was like comparing a bungalow to the Empire State Building!
My father started his 42-year career with Investors Syndicate (Group) in October of 1945, and was also a committed Rotarian and Mason. Forever proud of being part of the RCAF, he sat as president and other positions on the boards of various groups like Fort Garry Horse, War Time Pilots and the Observers Association. As a child I remember going to Minto Armouries when my dad was the Commanding Officer on the parade square. I’d never heard him shout out so loud before!
My father passed away in 2005, three years after my mom. They are missed.
In the 1980s, my dad was invited to a Remembrance Day ceremony at a River East Transcona School to be the guest veteran and speak about what Remembrance Day meant to him. That day I brought my cassette tape recorder to capture his words. Years later, in order to preserve it, I put his talk on YouTube, using family photos in lieu of the fact that there was no actual video from the day. Pretty amateur, but over nine minutes you get the gist of what hew as saying. Apparently it made an impact on those early years students, imagining what it must have been like to suddenly have your best friend gone. Real and serious stuff!
—Janet Riddell McCombe, daughter
