Description
Mr. Ney talks about his return home, and how the war changed him.
Ken Ney
Mr. Ney was born in Stratford, Ontario on 21 September 1923. His father was a farmer so the Depression didn't really affect his family. He began his training in Chatham. Mr. Ney joined the signal corps and was also a dispatch rider during his service. Mr. Ney volunteered to stay for another year after the war but contracted TB and was sent home.
Transcript
I got TB, yeah and they traced it back to the, remember I told you that German Ack-ack place? Going into their barracks and sleeping in their beds and we didn't disinfect them. They should have been done and they figured I got it in there.
Well they sent me home, I wasn't long going home then.
Oh it was good because, well my dad had had a heart attack so he needed all the help he could get so I never had any time to feel sorry for myself or anything and I got passes from the hospital and I, well he had a dairy barn and I could do the milking for him. We got along quite well, it was good to be home, really.
Oh I grew up, I was more mature, a way more mature like coming home and going with the guys that I had known before that didn't go in the army, they were very immature compared to us.
Oh like little things bothered them, you know so and so did this and did that, you didn't have that anymore. In the army you pretty well learned to put up with everything that goes on that's not in you power to change.