They stood on guard for thee. Now you can give these brave men and women something in return. On November 11th, you can raise a flag in support of our veterans and make their day.
Honour and give thanks for their sacrifice. Support Operation Raise a Flag today.
Helen Kerr was initially given the rank of 2nd Lieutenant when she joined the military in January 1944 and reported to London (Ontario) Military Hospital. “I was being paid the same as a man of equal rank, more than I had been making as a civilian nurse prior to joining the military,” she says.
Upon receiving her certificate of qualification as a Lieutenant Nursing Sister, Helen went on to military training in Kitchener, Ontario, before travelling to Windsor, Nova Scotia, and boarding the Lady Nelson, one of two Canadian hospital ships in May 1944, for the voyage to England.
“The sea was very choppy. We went to Liverpool; I enjoyed the crossing. There was ample food. If I got nauseous, I went up and walked the deck and the fresh air and wind revived me.”
As a nursing sister in Canadian Army Hospitals in Britain and France during the Second World War, Helen cared for injured English, French, Canadian and, occasionally, German soldiers.
She was first stationed in Horley, a 1,200-bed Canadian Army Hospital caring for D-Day casualties. “It was great to be nursing again,” she says, recalling that many of the soldiers had wounds that were non-life-threatening “but heartbreaking in many ways. They were still in post-battle shock and avoided talking about their experiences.”
In October that year, she moved to Dieppe where she was stationed at Chateau Mesnieres-en-Bray, an old chateau near Normandy that had been converted into a Canadian Army Hospital. It was there she met her future husband just prior to being transferred in January 1945 to the ex-German hospital St. Omer, 20 miles from Dunkirk where the Germans were still bottled in.
She met British Army Captain Alex Kerr at a Boxing Day dance on Dec. 26, 1944 and was somewhat surprised by her answer when he asked her to marry him at a New Year’s Eve dance: “I don’t know why, but I said yes. But I told him I couldn’t really marry him as I didn’t want to live anywhere but Canada. He said that’s OK, we’ll go there!”
In March 1945, she left for England and then on to Scotland for their wedding on April 12. Alex left on the River Clyde on May 8, VE Day, in charge of a group of men who arrived at the ship in leg irons from HM Prison Barlinnie — all had volunteered to fight in order to get out of jail.
As married nurses weren’t allowed to be that close to the fighting, Helen remained in England, working at Basingstoke Neurological and Plastic Surgery Hospital, caring for Allied soldiers suffering neurological and spinal injuries. When Basingstoke closed, she was transferred to #11 Canadian Army Hospital at Taplow, Lady Astor’s Estate.
She then served at Bramshott, the last Canadian Army Hospital in England where she remained until she and Alex left for Canada on May 30, 1946.
Upon her return to Canada with her new husband, they had three children, and Helen worked in hospitals in Sarnia and London before transferring to Northwestern General Hospital in Toronto where she was a head nurse of the psychiatric unit until her retirement at the age of 65.
She went on to write Tender Years, a book that chronicles her family's attempt to work a homestead in Saskatchewan before the drought, grasshoppers and the depression drove them back to Ontario.
Incidents of whooping cough, mumps, chickenpox, smallpox, scarlet fever, injuries and quarantines for the family of eight are recalled in detail in her book. One particular crisis involved her eating a poisonous flower, sending her into a state of delirium for 24 hours where she saw imaginary bugs crawling up the walls!
“My mother’s Quakerian philosophy ‘Just grit your teeth and bear it’ was instilled in me at an early age, it still causes me to clench my jaw in time of stress!”
Helen also chronicles her time at a nursing college located at the Ontario Psychiatric Hospital in London, where patients were treated with care and given great responsibilities to keep the facility going. It nurtured an interest in Helen to dedicate her career to caring for those with mental illness.
The last part of her book details her services during the Second World War, both in England and France, and the many heroes she cared for.
Helen turned 101 in 2020.
Robert, at age 73 (2020) is one of the younger Veterans living at Sunnybrook.
A Veteran of the Cold War — described as the time from 1947 until the dissolving of the Soviet Union — Robert served with the Canadian military for 12 years, including:
When asked about being in the military, he stated: “To tell you the truth, no one believes you. Truth is like poetry and no one likes poetry. Our (Cold War) Vets serving in the UN missions around the world had to do with little and provide a separation and protection for antagonists of both fighting factions.”
It took a little more effort to get Bob to speak directly about his own experiences, most notably, two unique training exercises that took place in the Defense Research Establishment Station (DRES) in Suffield Alberta: Exercise ‘Vacuum’ in the fall of 1968, and Test ‘Dial Pac’ in the Summer of 1970.
Exercise Vacuum was the largest gas warfare exercise at that time, involving Canadian, British and American armies.
“We soldiers had our gas warfare suits and masks on all day
every day for a week… Orders to crawl and roll around the
Alberta field came down the line and in the cold fall drizzle
we practised playing war in a gas environment. Suits on,
mask on, mask off, suit off…Gas from above — tear gas, vomit gas streamed from the sky.
Gas mortars. Blister (or mustard) gas in a liquid solution
sprayed around the field.I got a mouthful, put my respirator on and started choking.
My first try at gas warfare was not too spectacular…”
“The experience created my first military PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder]. I’m bipolar and have PTSD,” says Bob, who speaks frankly about his later diagnoses 20 years ago.
The other notable exercise he describes — Dial Pac — was a test of 500 tons of TNT chemical explosives that involved a large variety of shelters and equipment being tested. 40 Soldiers from the 1st Brigade were sent to be part of a stress test using various doses of the calming drug Diazepam, thought to be used if a nerve gas attack ever took place.
“We rehearsed the lead up to the test and were given different levels of the drug from placebos to 50 mg, to lower our stress. Many interviews and blood pressure readings were taken. Only a few of us of the 40 were combat-trained. Combined with the open canteen, we were considerably calm…”
“Kaboom! … Rabbits, birds and insects came flying at you in a
red wave. The huge mushroom cloud rose and it rained dirt
for 15 minutes after.”
Bob suffered concussions and hearing issues resulting from the explosions and armed fire during his training.
While he was still serving, he met his future wife Margaret Irene. “I met her when she was learning to be a nurse. She wasn’t allowed to go out and drink yet,” he smiles of their youthful days. They were married for 36 years.
Father to a daughter and two stepsons, Bob speaks fondly of his wife, who passed eight years ago: “My wife never understood the Army but the Generals loved her, her character. We called her Wild Rose, the flower of Alberta, where she was from. We even had a garden with roses.”
Bob went to school in Ontario and went on to run the Town of Picton water plant.
He wrote several articles, including one that was published in Esprit De Corps, a magazine for the Canadian military.
Back in Alberta and British Columbia, Bob ran and owned a trucking company and was a “motorcycle guy” with a passion for riding.
These days, some of his favourite things are Wendy’s hamburgers and osso bucco. Bob also enjoys learning about smudging and other Indigenous practices.
His sense of humour is infallible. If his nickname weren’t already a clue — “four-belly Bob” — as he lifts his shirt to expose his midriff.
“I never went overseas with the Army. I was not stationed in Germany, not on any UN Missions. I was always scheduled to go, but did not. My very presence in the Army kept the enemy from attacking.”
Receiving mail was always a highlight for Fred. During the war, when serving in Italy and in the Netherlands, he recalls reading letters from his mother at night in the darkness. Years later, back home, he was always the first to eagerly go through the mail, his family recalls.
His 100th birthday was on the horizon in 2020, and on the night of the Super Bowl, his son Ron posted to social media a photo of his father, dressed in military best, holding a poster introducing himself as a WWII Veteran who would like to receive 100 birthday cards for the momentous centennial on March 6.
In the days and weeks ahead, social media and Canada Post were abuzz with well-wishers from around the world on a mission to salute a decorated Canadian WWII Veteran. It became a story of national pride that was covered by many print, TV, radio and social media outlets and supporters worldwide.
The Canadian Forces in the US shared on social media: “Once, buried alive by an enemy shell. His brothers dug him out. Once, a man standing beside him was shot and killed by a Nazi Sniper. Once, Ortona, Monte Cassino, north through Italy to France. Now, he’d like to hear from you. Please write.”
His regiment with the Canadian Forces brought him a Bren gun to hold again — the type of machine gun Fred had carried during his service in Europe over 75 years ago. He kissed it and teared up when he saw it.
Of particular impact to Fred and his family was all the mail from schoolchildren from around the world. “I believe Dad has given people, particularly the younger generation, a chance to connect, and learn about such a vital part of our history.”
On the eve of his big day, a number of special friends dropped in for a visit, including various military groups such as the Cape Breton Highlanders — the regiment in which Fred served during WWII. Perhaps most telling was a visit from the Consul-General of the Netherlands in Toronto who presented a card and a plaque on behalf of the Kingdom of the Netherlands: the words expressed heartfelt thanks to a Canadian soldier who helped to liberate their country 75 years ago, bringing the room to tears.
Father and son and family thanked everyone for the overwhelming response: “It was more than Dad and I could have imagined. His birthday wish is now complete, having received over 90 thousand birthday cards.”
A native of Prince Edward Island, Fred ran a farm for many years after serving in the Army. “I had six cows, three horses and a tractor.” He married his (now late) wife Yvonne, and together they had two sons, moved to Toronto and raised their family, before eventually returning to PEI upon his retirement.
In the spring of 2019, Fred moved into the Sunnybrook Veterans Centre and was able to experience his first Remembrance Day at the Centre with his fellow Veterans, and observe the sea of flags.
“It feels great [to see the flags]. I feel proud, I feel happiness. It feels good to know [that Canadians appreciate]. I never thought, had no idea at the time [during wartime], it [service] was so important. I’m happy to be a Veteran. That I came back home and was able to [build a wonderful home for all Canadians].”
In the fall of 1944, 17 year old Clayton (Clay) Hayes hopped a freight train headed to the West Coast of British Columbia from his home in Brandon, Manitoba and enlisted in the Canadian Merchant Navy. His brother was already serving with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). His father had served with the Merchant Navy (United Kingdom) during World War I (WWI). Stationed in Vancouver, Clay was assigned to the Goldstream Park merchant ship. Merchant ships carried vital cargo to the people affected by the war (food / clothing) as well as much needed military supplies (aircraft, tanks, guns and munitions) and whatever else was required for the war effort.
The Goldstream traveled down the Pacific coast, through the Panama Canal to New York Harbor where it would become part of a convoy of 80–90 ships gathering from across the United States and Canada before heading across the Atlantic to England. Because of its vital cargo, the convoy was a prime target for enemy surface raiders and U-boats. Part of Clay’s job as an Able Bodied Seaman was either to man the crow’s nest, on watch for enemy subs and aircraft, or to be at the wheel steering the ship.
Clay recalls that on one trip leaving from Vancouver, they were hit by a severe storm off the coast of California. All hands were on deck, trying to save the lumber secured to the deck with chains. The storm was so bad, they lost all the lumber and a number of crewmen (including a friend of his) were badly injured. The injured were taken to a hospital in San Pedro, California before the Goldstream renewed its trip.
One of the scariest moments came while unloading their cargo at the Surrey Commercial Docks in southeast London. The fleet got hit numerous times by unmanned German planes launched from German occupied France. Although the bombs landed close by, their ship was not hit. Others were and lives were lost. After the war ended in 1945, Clay stayed on for another two to three years to help with the post war rebuilding efforts.
Upon his return home, Clay married Margaret Doyle and together they raised four children (three daughters and a son). Over the course of his working life, Clay owned and operated several small businesses in the Toronto area including one that manufactured menu covers and another that sold industrial latex to art supply stores across Canada and the United States. He retired at the age of 85. Margaret passed away in 2010 at age 82.
When asked about his war experience, Clay is positive. “I’d do it again for sure,” he said. “The whole war experience was very good. I’m very proud of the role that the Merchant Navy played in providing desperately needed equipment, fuel, food and personnel to Europe and around the world.”
Mel Storrier, 99 (as of 2020), is a survivor in every sense of the word. At 66 years of age, while semi-retired and living in Etobicoke, he suffered a severe stroke that would change his life.
The stroke affected the left side of his body, leaving him paralyzed with no range of motion and without the use of one hand. His vision and hearing were also affected. Then, to complicate matters, Mel fell and broke his hip during physiotherapy.
“Staying at home was not possible, recalls his middle son, David, who visits his dad often at the Veterans Centre. “My mother was showing early signs of dementia and was not able to care for Dad. Sunnybrook was the perfect place and it has been his home for the last 31 years.”
Originally from Quebec, Mel was born in Rosemont, the centre-east part of Montreal. In 1939, at the age of 18 and still in high school, he decided to join the army, rather than be conscripted. He served with the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals as a motorcycle dispatch rider delivering messages to the front line and signalman sending Morse code messages. In the summer of 1943, Mel and his unit participated in the Invasion of Sicily. Like many veterans, he never spoke openly about the war to his family.
When he returned from the war in 1945, Mel studied at McGill University and graduated with a degree in engineering in 1951. It was there that he met his wife, Teresa “Lee” Eileen, and they were married in Montreal, prior to his graduation. Mel ran several companies during his career as a mining engineer, working mostly in Manitoba, Quebec, Ontario and Alberta.
Mel has approached life with a great deal of determination. A life-long learner, he is a keen reader and frequent visitor to the library at Sunnybrook’s. Keeping his mind and body as active as possible has been important.
Art therapy has also provided both great enjoyment and benefit. Mel always has a new idea and a “can do” spirit. “I’ve always had a little bit of art in me and I’ve just let it grow. It comes naturally to me,” says Mel.
Whether he’s working in the art studio with fused glass or in the photography studio, Mel has shown that there is a great deal to life after a stroke.
In the spring of 1942 and just shy of 17, Don enlisted in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve. Thanks to a phony letter of signed permission from his mother, he made it past the recruiting officer. Despite the fact that his parents were not on board with the idea, he ventured off to sea.
As a junior seaman and gunner, he spent three years on the defensively-equipped merchant ships (DEMS) zigzagging across the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans delivering supplies during the Second World War.
"Moving across the Atlantic Ocean, at only eight knots, we were sitting ducks, for the German U-boats," says Don.
Over a period of three years, he saw more than 40 allied ships sink, fortunately he was never hit by a German U-boat or fighter bomber.
In one 1944 convoy, a ship sank with another man named Donald Stewart on board, and Don's parents were notified that their son had died at sea. With no mail delivery, Don did not keep in touch with his parents and so they were unaware of this error.
At the end of the war, he came home unannounced and shocked his father, a policeman who just happened to be at the train station meeting the soldiers returning.
"He usually didn't show much emotion, but that day he hugged me long and hard. I will never forget that feeling — there wasn't much talking," recalls Don.
Recently, Don has served as President of the Veterans & Community Residents Council, advising hospital administration in a constructive manner on issues related to the welfare of residents living in L-wing and K-wing, Canada's largest veterans care facility.
Back home in British Columbia Don served as Legion Branch President in both Penticton and Kamloops. He has been a proud and active member of the Royal Canadian Legion for approximately 70 years.
Friendships are very important to Don and at the Veterans Centre he keeps busy socially whether it's dinner out in the community, a Legion meeting in Niagara Falls or simply time together with his comrades in the Blythwood Social Club, a pub located onsite for residents and family members to socialize over a beverage.
Originally from the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, Don is the proud father of eight children, fifteen grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
When Richard Ratcliffe left his home in St. Catherines, Ontario to enlist at age 17, he was on a quest for adventure, eventually travelling far from the Royal Canadian Naval College in British Columbia to the Mediterranean, the
Middle East and the Western Pacific, as well as seeing active service during the Korean War.
As a member of the Royal Canadian Navy, Richard participated in daring missions around the world, buoyed by a sense of pride in being able to defend the interests of the United Nations and NATO over the course of a
successful military career that spanned roughly 25 years.
He rose through the ranks, serving aboard 12 ships and ultimately as Commander of the famed destroyer the HMCS Qu’Appelle, with a crew of 230. During the Korean conflict from 1950 to 1952, he helped provide anti-aircraft
and anti-submarine defence, which included escorting an aircraft carrier flying strikes into North Korea.
Following active duty, Richard served another five years with the Royal Canadian Navy Reserve. Subsequently, he worked for the Maritime Council of Premiers in the Nova Scotia government, and as head of the residence
at St. Mary’s University. In 1981, he and Mary Patricia, his wife of almost 50 years, established Cumberland County Knitters, a cottage industry that manufactured hand-knit sweaters and fashion accessories.
While Richard’s naval career was filled with drama, one of the highlights of his life took place in 2017 when he soared over Niagara Falls by helicopter with his grandson Joe as part of the Sunnybrook Veterans Grant
a Wish, a program made possible by donor support. Viewing Niagara Falls from the air had been a life-long dream of his. "As children, the Falls were always an attraction for us. The ride lasted just 12 minutes, but for me,
it was the trip of a lifetime."
His "can do" attitude and leadership abilities still characterize Richard at age 92 (as of 2020). As a resident in Sunnybrook’s Veterans Centre, he’s enjoying sharing stories and memories with his fellow veterans,
but he lives very much in the present. In 2017, he was elected president of the Veteran and Community Residents’ Council. What’s more, that year he was also featured on the Toronto Star front page as one of three veteran bearers
of the Invictus flag.
Richard's adventure continues, this time in service of his fellow veterans with whom he shares his youthful spirit and love of life. "The war was exciting, but right now is just as exciting," he exclaims. He is visibly
moved when expressing his gratitude to Sunnybrook Veterans Centre for the outstanding care he has received. In 2017, Richard said "We’re 475 of the most privileged people in Canada. We’re treated like royalty every day."
Bill was a Gunner in the Korean War. He enlisted in the army at Chorley Park in Toronto, Ontario in August 1950 when he was 21. He felt it was something he had to do. The Korean War had just begun and both of his brothers had served during WWII. From Toronto, he went to Petawawa where he was outfitted before shipping out to the Canadian Forces base in Shilo, Manitoba for basic training.
One memory that stands out for Bill is the Canoe River train crash that happened November 20, 1951. “Our group, 23 officers and 315 men of the 2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery (RCHA) were on route to Fort Lewis, Washington for additional training before being deployed to Korea. The railroad dispatcher had mistakenly put two trains on the same track in the Rocky Mountains near Valemount, British Columbia. Ours an older, wooden train and a more modern steel train — the Transcontinental Flyer met on a curve, neither seeing the other one coming, and hit head on.”
The damage to the older train was severe. Seventeen Canadian soldiers were killed — more casualties than the unit suffered during its first year of fighting in Korea. “We were all taken back to Banff, Alberta by a train that had a mother engine added to it so the injured, many badly burned by stream, could be treated. The rest of us were re-outfitted. We waited for the track to be repaired and resumed our trip to Washington to complete our training.”
From Seattle, the men got on an American ship and crossed the International Date Line on route to Korea. “The trip took several days and we arrived either late January or early February 1951. We drove up the front, eventually setting up camp north of the 38th Parallel in enemy territory. As a gunner, my job was to fire a 25-pounder field gun which was mounted and pulled on a trailer. We’d set up several kilometres behind the frontline troops. We supported the Princess Patricia’s and the Van Doos. The Major, who was also on the frontline, would give orders and radio the coordinates for us to fire. If wrong, he would readjust them and we fired again. This continued until we hit the intended target.
During this time they were deployed on or near Hill 355 so named on military maps because it was 355 metres above sea level. The Hill was strategically located just north of Seoul and was highly valued because it was the highest ground overlooking the surrounding front lines and supply routes. Bill recalls that they took a severe pounding there as both sides fiercely fought to gain control.
Bill’s 18 month military commitment turned into two years. He returned to Canada on July 27, 1953. “When they sent replacements, you went home,” he said. Upon his return, his brother bought him a dump truck and he went into the trucking and excavation business during the summer. In the winter, he drove trucks for Texaco, Canada for 15 years delivering furnace oil until they shut down their Canadian operations. He later worked with Canada Post as a driver and letter carrier, and the TTC as a wheel-trans driver. He has 5 boys and 11 grandchildren.
“There’s no need for young people to die. If you see death in the field, it’s not glamorous like the movies. I start thinking of my children and my grandchildren. I don’t want that for them. I’m lucky I came out unscathed, but a lot didn’t. A lot of them bear scars that you’ll never see.”
Sunnybrook officially opened in 1948 as a war veterans' hospital; a place to care for heroes.
Today, as the largest veterans care facility in the country, in partnership with Veterans Affairs Canada, we are honoured to provide the best cognitive, physical, mental health and stroke care to 375 Canadian veterans of the Second World War, Korean War and the Cold War.
As the largest veterans’ care facility in Canada, we offer long term and complex hospital care for veterans.
In honour of this Remembrance Day, Operation Raise a Flag will help raise funds in support of the Veterans program at Sunnybrook.
Please consider making a donation in honour of our veterans. With your support, 37,500 flags will be planted around the Sunnybrook campus for Remembrance Day as a symbol of honour and appreciation.
It is the mission of the Veterans Centre to assist each and every resident to achieve their best possible life experience while they are at Sunnybrook. Your gift will help Sunnybrook Veterans Centre provide the very best cognitive, physical, mental health and stroke care to 375 Canadian veterans. We believe our brave veterans deserve nothing less.
By giving today, you help ensure that every veteran we care for spends their time in comfort, benefitting from the best medical equipment and most compassionate care possible.
Download our Veterans Impact Report to read about the difference your donation makes.
Donate here
Telephone: 1-866-696-2008
Mail in your donation: Sunnybrook Foundation, 2075 Bayview Avenue, KGW01, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5
Every donation will raise a flag.
Yes. If you order your flag online, a tax receipt will be issued immediately to the email address provided.
If you order through the mail, a tax receipt will be placed in the mail and received within 10 business days.
Yes, you can. However, the tax receipt will be made out to the individual making the donation.
We cannot guarantee the lifespan of these paper flags. Weather permitting, the flags will remain on the lawn throughout Remembrance Day and will be removed the morning of November 13th.
Flags are collected and recycled.
The flags are manufactured in Ontario and purchased from a local retail vendor — The Flag Shop.
The flags will be planted on the grounds and messages provided while giving a donation online or mailed in will be combined for the veterans. If there is a specific veteran that you wish to honour, we will do our best to pass the message along to him/her.
This is not possible as the flags are not personalized and are planted all together.
Thank you for your interest in volunteering with Operation Raise a Flag.
Due to ongoing safety concerns associated with COVID-19 and risk of community spread, members of the public will not be permitted to plant flags in 2020. The health and safety of the public, hospital staff, patients and the veterans who call Sunnybrook home are our top priority. We appreciate the incredible volunteer support in previous years and hope to see you in 2021.
Due to the ongoing safety concerns associated with COVID-19 members of the public will not be permitted to plant flags in 2020. This year, Sunnybrook Foundation, Sunnybrook Hospital staff and a group from the Canadian military are volunteering to plant the flags to ensure the veterans are honoured for their service.
