Rest and Cider - a Bad Mix
Heroes Remember
Rest and Cider - a Bad Mix
Transcript
Description
Mr. Walsh describes locating a cellar full of cider while on leave, and being so thirsty that he and his fellow soldiers drank cider to the point of illness.
Graham Walsh
Graham Walsh was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, on January 22, 1925. He was the third of seven children. His father worked in a steel mill, and made a bit extra selling coke, a smelting byproduct. His father died when he was seven, and Mr. Walsh and his brother worked odd jobs to help the family. He joined the local reserves when he was fifteen and two years later, at the age of seventeen, enlisted for overseas service. Once in England, he was overlooked for Italian deployment and immediately volunteered for Normandy. Mr. Walsh served from France to post-war Germany, via the liberation of Holland, all with the Royal Regiment of Canada. He was fortunate to survive three wounds while in action.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:11
- Person Interviewed:
- Graham Walsh
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- Second World War
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- Royal Regiment of Canada
- Occupation:
- Tank Driver
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Two More Wounds
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An Unfair Repatriation System
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Mr. Walsh discusses his company’s low-key reaction to news that the war was over, and describes an amusingly disappointing attempt at celebration.
Just a Soldier Like Me
While in occupied Germany, and in command of a work detail, Mr. Walsh befriends a badly wounded German soldier. Their conversations reveal how similar they really are.
War isn’t for Older People
Mr. Walsh describes the demoralization factor he attributes to older married soldiers constantly reminiscing about their families.
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