61 www.on.legion.ca ONTARIO COMMAND BENNETT, William Clarence William was born on June 30, 1897 in Walton, Ontario. He enlisted in the Army in Brussels, Ontario on December 31, 1915. He left Canada on November 1, 1916 from Halifax arriving in Liverpool on November 12 with the 161st Battalion. In April 1917, preparing to advance on Vimy Ridge, German soldiers hiding in tunnels surprised them and he was taken prisoner. He was wounded in the leg. The Canadians retook the ground, and he was sent to the Canadian Convalescent Hospital at Camp Brummley, England. He returned to Canada in November 1918 and discharged on January 13, 1919. William married Eileen Kelly and they had two children, Ron and Shirley. His wife died and he married Irene (Pat) Patterson. He operated a store in Winthrop and Walton and was a Postmaster. He enlisted during World War II on June 29, 1940 and was posted to Toronto in 1942 as Staff Sergeant with the Postal Corp. He was not deployed overseas. He returned to Walton on July 30, 1945 to run the store and be Postmaster. William moved to Clinton and was the Postmaster in Vanastra. He was a Charter member of The Royal Canadian Legion Seaforth Branch 156 and was awarded a Life Membership in 1962. William passed away on September 12, 1967. BESSERER, Colette Irene Colette was born in Sudbury, Ontario on July 14, 1959. She enlisted in the Army in 1983 with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. She served as a UN/NATO Peacekeeper in Canada, on the High Seas, and did a six-month tour in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Colette passed away on July 17, 2002. BENTON, James Henry James was born in England in August 1894. He immigrated to Canada in 1903 and worked for John Williams as farm labour. He enlisted in the Army in 1916 with the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles and served in Canada, England and France. During an attack on Passchendaele on October 30, James was severely wounded by shrapnel and was evacuated to No. 5 General Hospital. James died of his wounds on November 16, 1917 and is buried at the St. Sever Cemetery, Rowen France. His name is on the War Memorial West McGillivray.
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