Reasons for the Korean War

Heroes Remember

Reasons for the Korean War

Transcript

I started thinking why did I come over here? I often said that, you know, “Why did I come to a place like this?” But then after we get talking and everything else, there was a reason why we went over there. Now even though at first they called it a conflict, but it was no conflict. Oh of course conflict is war anyway. It was just another mild word for it. But anyway we got talking and then I seen those little kids running around in different places, nothing, half naked you know and they always trying to get something from you. We always had candy and everything else like that and then I start thinking about well we’re lucky in Canada. We don’t have anybody overrunning us or telling us what to do. So I said to myself, “Well what we’re doing over here we’re over helping those kids to fight communism.” And this is what we were doing and I think we did, we Canadians showed what they could do with what they had. And we were all well appreciated and looked at, you know, as great soldiers. And I was proud of every one of them. Yes I can guarantee it. I’d stand by them anytime right now. You know we, sometimes you had fists to cuffs between yourselves, but it was never any, you know, it was never carried over. You might fight with a guy one day and you’d be buddy buddies the next day. You never, you know, there’s no what is it animosity or anything else between different companies or platoons or anything. You’d always, “Oh my platoon’s the best platoon.” and all this sort of thing. But never in a serious way. We used to try to beat each other at different things you know, in sports or whatever you have. But other than that, no, we were still a fighting force and we’d be there to help each other. We wouldn’t let any of our buddies down.

Description

Mr. Rees reflects on his reasons for confronting the Communists in Korea and the comradeship in the Canadian camp.

Charlie Rees

Charles Rees was born in Lance Cove, Newfoundland on July 14, 1930. He first experienced the consequences of war at the age of 12, when he and the rest of his community were involved in rescuing the crew from two ships torpedoed nearby. While working in Toronto, Mr. Rees made the decision to enlist for service in the Korean War. He was sent overseas with the 1st Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment, where he served a one year tour of duty on the 38th Parallel. When he returned to Canada, he trained as a paratrooper. After leaving the service, he was a pressman in the printing trade. Mr. Rees joined both the Atlantic and Canadian Korean Veterans Associations.

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