BARRHEAD-People who go by the south side of the Barrhead Royal Canadian Legion will have no choice but to contemplate the sacrifices Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) have on the nation's behalf.
Or at least that is the hope the Legion has about its newest upgrade to its building, specifically a mural honouring Canada's Armed Forces.
Legion president Chuck Mortimer said the process started about a year ago when they were approached by long-time member Rebecca Lonsdale who floated the idea. She also donated the funds for the mural.
At first, he approached the Barrhead Art Club, but they said the project was beyond their capabilities.
"They said they would be able to do a mural inside the building, but because of the age of most of their members, they didn't want to go up on the scaffolding," he said.
However, the project did not die, Mortimer and Lonsdale, who now lives in Drayton Valley, continued to talk about what they wanted to include in a potential mural and they came up with a rough sketch.
Both Mortimer and Lonsdale noted they wanted to honour all three branches of the CAF who served in both World Wars, Korea as well as all the NATO and United Nations peacekeeping missions.
What the pair decided on was a Second World War scene that included pictures of a Sherman tank on sand travelling towards the mountains, a Lancaster bomber and a corvette ship along with a red poppy and the words "We Remember".
"Canada had a very significant force [in the Second World War] and were especially significant in the Italy campaign," Mortimer said.
He said the Canadian army was waiting in England to be deployed for overseas and Italy.
"They had no fighting experience and they went into Sicily before going into Italy proper," Mortimer said.
He noted the Americans who had a significant force were tasked with taking the west side, while the untested Canadians were assigned the east.
"It was a rough go," Mortimer said. "The Canadians were constantly going up and down, crossing several rivers that flowed into the [Adriatic Sea]."
He added it did not too long until the Canadians proved their worth. Mortimer said many people in the area contributed to the success of the Italian campaign, specifically mentioning Bill Dewitz. These forces then joined the Allied forces to help liberate France and Holland. The Sherman tank was an instrumental part of all three campaigns and thus is why it was depicted.
It should be noted that Mortimer served 15 years in the CAF reserves, which is part of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps. His father also served with the CAF in both World Wars. It is through these connections that Mortimer has become a bit of an amateur Canadian military historian.
The British designed, Canadian built Lancaster bomber also played a pivotal role in the Allied victory in Europe and again local area CAF members served on bomber crews with both the Royal Air Force and Royal Canadian Airforce.
"The corvettes were quick little boats that protected the convoys going across the North Atlantic from German U-boat attacks," Mortimer said.
Of course, little is a matter of definition he said, noting they were about 200 feet long.
That being said Mortimer noted they carried very little armament, with one gun similar to the one that can be seen at Barrhead's War Memorial and several depth charges.
Although they had the sketch and funding after the Art Club turned the project down, they were not sure how to proceed until a few weeks ago when they were approached by Morris and Karen Cartwright who own the residents on the north side of the Legion, if they could have Robert Murray, a Morinville artist paint a mountain scenery mural on its north wall.
After seeing Murray's work, Mortimer commissioned him to paint the mural on their south wall. It was completed on July 10.
Why Lonsdale thought a mural was necessary
Unfortunately, Lonsdale wasn't able to attend what was to be a dedication ceremony on July 15, but she said she is pleased how the mural turned out and commended the Legion in seeing it come to fruition.
Lonsdale, who has been a member of the Barrhead Legion since 1986 and will continue to do so as long as the building stands, said she noticed several other Legions commission murals to honour service people and how successful it had been in keeping the "act of remembrance" in their communities' collective memories.
"And I thought a mural in Barrhead would have a similar impact," she said.
Lonsdale said, noting that is why she contacted the Legion and got the ball rolling.
In addition to her more than 30-year service to the Barrhead Legion (serving as first vice-president and president of both the Legion and the Ladies' Auxilary on multiple occasions) her family has a tradition of military service. Her grandfather Hugh Dunlop served in the infantry in the First World War, her father Thomas "Burt" Lonsdale served as a tank gunner in the Second World War as did her uncle Floyd Lonsdale, a gunner with the Royal Canadian Artillery, who was killed during the Sicily campaign. Lonsdale's son, Gordon, also served in the CAF as part of the Intelligence Branch.
"Any work I do for the Legion, in the back of my mind I do it in memory of my uncle and all the others in my family who have served," Lonsdale said. "And now anyone who goes by the mural will have no choice, but to remember those who have served."
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
