Postcards from Juno
VISITING THE HOMES THAT CANADIAN SOLDIERS LEFT BEHIND IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Some 400 unsuspecting property owners and tenants across Canada got a dose of military history courtesy of mystery postcards that landed in their mailboxes in May of this year. The project — Postcards from Juno — spearheaded by the Juno Beach Centre, Canada’s Second World War museum on Juno Beach, used the postcards to notify people living at select addresses about Second World War veterans who lived at their current location in the 1940s, before heading over to serve in Nazioccupied France, where they were killed in battle. The veterans were chosen from among the Canadians who died during the first five days of the Normandy landings — from June 6 to June 10, 1944 — a pivotal step in the march toward Europe’s liberation from Nazi Germany. Staff at the centre cultivated the first series of addresses from the personnel papers of soldiers — the military records of more than 900 Canadians — who died during those first days of the Battle of Normandy. The project was part of efforts to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day (June 6, 1944) when 14,000 Canadian soldiers, along with more than 140,000 British and American allies, stormed a stretch of beach (code named “Juno”) on France’s northern coast, creating the largest seaborne invasion in history. The personalized postcards included the name, rank, age, and the date of death of the soldier linked to each address. The idea of using the last pieces of personal information linked to hundreds of fallen Canadian soldiers to create postcards commemorating their sacrifice was conceived by Mike Bechthold, executive director, Juno Beach Centre Association, which operates the war museum in Normandy. “It’s a way to look at the men who never came home,” he said. “In a lot of ways, these are the postcards they would have sent, had they survived the battle.” The cards included a collage of images from D-Day and the Battle of Normandy and informed recipients they’re living at the last known address of the soldier before he volunteered to serve. Details on how current residents could comment on the project were attached, something Bechthold hoped would harvest interesting tidbits not yet known about the addresses and the soldiers themselves. He’s aware that some of the cards could end up with recipients who may toss them into the bin before understanding their intended purpose — but, it’s worth the risk. “It’s about raising awareness,” he said. “I would like to see Juno Beach on a Canadian $20 bill. I would like there to be a Juno Beach Day, very much like how we have Vimy Ridge Day.” “As we lose our veterans, we’re losing our personal connection with the story,” he said. He envisions there being hundreds more cards to come. The following accounts from postcard recipients was compiled by junobeach.org and the Toronto Star. Pte. George Westlake, Cliff St., Toronto Dave Byron now has another keepsake to tuck away with his own father’s Second World War service medals — a postcard honouring one of three brothers, who once lived at his house and were killed during the Normandy landings. It didn’t take Byron, 65, long to utter the name of the three military men who lived in the Cliff Street home he now inhabits. “The Westlake brothers,” he said with some certainty of the surname that rings bells in military circles. “I already knew it.” The Westlakes’ legacy is imprinted all over his neighbourhood. Westlake Memorial Park within a stone’s throw of his front stoop bears their name and a laneway near the park was rebranded — Heroes Lane — in their honour. “How the hell did a family with three boys live in this thing, it’s not big enough and I live alone,” Byron quipped. Byron’s home is among the 82 Toronto addresses that are part of the Postcards from Juno project. George Westlake, 23, of the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, was the first of the brothers to die on June 7. Four days later Albert, 25, and Thomas, 29, members of the Queen’s Own Rifles, were among 100 Canadians who died trying to take the tiny village of Mesnil Patry. Juno Centre officials said this batch of cards will honour George — his brothers died just after the cut-off date for this leg of the project. Byron, who has resided at that address since 1981, recalls celebratory gatherings of groups near the house in previous years. “I had a tour from France show up one day,” he said. “My neighbour called and said, there is a whole bunch of people in your front yard.” The group in question — Westlake Brothers Souvenir Association — was brought there by Gary Westlake. Westlake, 77, a nephew of the fallen veterans, has fought doggedly to have their sacrifice commemorated. Westlake lauded the Juno Centre for its efforts. “They’re the only three Allied soldiers — who are brothers — in the world, to be buried in the same cemetery,” he said. “Any added source of remembrance, I applaud.” Westlake initially had some misgivings about the card being sent to Cliff Street, preferring instead for it to end up with immediate family, the nearby Royal Legion Branch 31 or Westlake Brothers Souvenir Association. Hearing of Westlake’s feelings, Byron said the card would certainly not land in the garbage and he would be open to handing it over to a group of Westlake’s choosing. “I think it’s a good idea that they’re doing this and I would like to get one,” Byron said of receiving the cards during an interview in May. “I will do more research, because my father and two uncles served in World War II.” Gary Westlake met Byron for the first time on April 1. They exchanged stories about their links to the war. “Since he’s got a connection to the military, that would be a nice person to send it to,” Westlake said. “I will share it with him, because I would love for him to know about who my uncles are.”
- Jason Miller
Rifleman Norman Symington, Salisbury Ave., Toronto
Mark Kingwell is a self-described Canadian military brat, who was constantly uprooted from one military base to the next, an upbringing that had him living in locales from P.E.I., to Nova Scotia, to Winnipeg and London, Ontario. “We moved every few years,” Kingwell, 56, said of his formative years as the son of Royal Canadian Air Force serviceman. His wife, Molly Montgomery, is an American, whose father Bruce Montgomery was a civil-rights supporter, who opposed the Vietnam War and fought to gain equal representation for Black Americans. “He represented Black contractors in Washington who were not receiving fair pay,” she said. “Both my parents were against the Vietnam War, and protested when they could.” Since tying the knot 11 years ago, the couple has created many memorable moments at their Cabbagetown home, but the history of the quaint Salisbury Avenue house was amplified back in May with notice that it was the last known address for Rifleman Norman Symington, who was 24-years-old when he was killed on June 7, 1944. The duo were about to receive a colourful commemorative postcard, courtesy of the Juno Beach Centre, marking Symington’s service and his connection to the home. “It adds meaning and a sense of history to the home,” said Montgomery, 56, who believes the home was built around 1885. Montgomery treasures her mother’s tales about the hardships of life during the Second World War, such as food rationing and how butter shortages led to margarine being sold in its pasty, white state along with a package of vegetable dye, which the women of the household would have to mix in to create the sought-after yellow colour, common to people who use the product today. “It was more of a collective sacrifice,” she said of that era. “Now, it just seems fragmented. We don’t have that connection to a common cause anymore.” Kingwell said the First and Second World Wars were key to Canada establishing its national identity. The lure of military service, even had him thinking about following in his father’s footsteps. “I came very close to joining up myself when I was finishing high school,” said Kingwell, who is now a University of Toronto philosophy professor. “I wanted to fly airplanes.”
– Jason Miller