87 www.on.legion.ca ONTARIO COMMAND BYRNE, Lawrence John “Lornie” Lawrence was born in Almonte, Ontario on February 25, 1920. He enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force on February 28, 1942. His father had immigrated to Canada from Ireland and along with his six siblings maintained his pride in his Irish heritage. He served in the Lanark militia before enlisting. He was posted to St. Thomas, Ontario for training duringWorldWar II. In December 1943, he joined the troops transported overseas. Lawrence began working as ground crew on aircraft in various area of England. In June 1944, he was part of the troop movement into France. With the push of Allied troops toward Germany, he moved into Belgium and then Holland. He was just like thousands of other Canadian boys doing their duty and he remained a proud Canadian the rest of his life. Upon his return to Canada in 1945, Lawrence moved to Ottawa where he found employment in the Federal Government’s Civil Service. Here he married his wife Veronica (Mason) and brought up his family of six children. Lawrence was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion in Montgomery for twenty years. He retired from the Civil Service and passed away on December 7, 1995. CAMPBELL, Clarence Arthur Clarence was born in Tillsonburg, Ontario in 1923. He enlisted in the Merchant Navy duringWorldWar II and served in the NorthAtlantic aboard the SS Bic Island which was part of Convoy HX-212. Seaman Campbell was nineteen years old when the SS Bic Island was caught amongst a sub pack east of Ireland and had lagged behind to pick up survivors from two other torpedoed ships during the three days that they were under attack by at least five U-Boats. The crew of the SS Bic Island, Clarence and all the survivors she had taken onboard were sunk by a U224 at sunset on October 29, 1942. CAMP, Geoffrey Herbert Geoffrey was born on January 1, 1925 in Owen Sound, Ontario. In 1932, the Camp Family packed up and returned to England. It was in England where Geoff enrolled in Radio School at age sixteen and entered the British Merchant Navy on May 14, 1943. In July 1943, he was given the position of 2nd Radio Officer on the S.S. Auk. One year later (July 1944), disaster hit when the Auk was shipwrecked due to enemy action in the Adriatic Sea. Geoff was reassigned to various vessels during the war. Geoff was discharged on January 18, 1946. He returned to Owen Sound in 1947 and a year later he married Margret White. Together they raised five children: Christina, Trevor, Kevin, Gayle, and Lisa. Geoff was employed at Richardson Bond & Wright (RBW) for years before he retired. Geoff was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion Tara Branch 383 for eight years before passing on July 12, 2001. His medal awards for service in the Merchant Navy include the 1939-1945 Star, Atlantic Star, Italy Star and War Medal 1939-1945.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTM0NTk1OA==