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Getting Married in England

Heroes Remember

Getting Married in England

Transcript
And I married in England, just before D-Day, so that I was waiting for quite some time for a ship to take me home. My wife didn’t accompany me, she had to go on a separate ship. And I think we, we was based in Aldershot for about two months, at least, waiting for our ship. She was in Stoke-on-Trent, and I was down in Aldershot. Interviewer: When did you finally get together? When we got to ... when she come over to Canada, which was in March of the next year. It was difficult to settle down, and I had an opportunity to start farming. I took over my father’s equipment, and so on, because he was getting rather elderly. And I farmed for about two years, and didn’t really make a success of it. I tried two or three other things to do, and I was most happy when they asked for volunteers to go to Korea. And I joined up again at something that I could do well.
Description

Mr. McKerracher speaks about meeting his bride and getting married while serving in England and the difficulty he felt returning to civilian life.

Neil McKerracher

Mr. McKerracher was born in Saskatchewan, on January 15, 1923. Nineteen-years-old, and eager for adventure, he moved to Ontario and decided to join the army. He became a member of the anti-aircraft regiment, and after receiving basic training in Petawawa, Ontario, he was shipped overseas. He served with coastal defence in Colchester, England. Mr. McKerracher was married in England during the Second World War. Post-war, he and his wife moved to Calgary, Alberta, where they raised their four children. Having no appetite for civilian life, Mr. McKerracher was eager to enlist for the Korean War. During his service in Korea, he was wounded by a mortar fragment, yet continued to serve in battle, holding the rank of Captain. Military life being his passion, Mr. McKerracher joined the Regular Force after his service in Korea. In 1953, he accepted a deployment to Germany, and lived there with his family for two years before returning to Canada. Mr. McKerracher retired from service life in 1978.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
1:22
Person Interviewed:
Neil McKerracher
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Location/Theatre:
England
Branch:
Army
Occupation:
Gunner

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