In 1939, at the age of 15, Gerald Fry fled Germany for England.
“Germany was not a place for Jews, and our family had a background of over 400 years,” the 86-year-old Ottawa resident said.
He enlisted in the British army and ended up fighting the Nazis, serving from D-Day to VE-Day.
Fry later found out his mother died at Auschwitz.
Fry and Renfrew’s William “Bill” Lockwood are profiled in a new book called Honour, featuring 35 Second World War veterans and supporters.
Lockwood, 93, a retired Royal Canadian Air Force flight lieutenant, is one of 600 pilots captured by the Japanese. A prisoner of war for over three years, he was freed in 1945, weighing less than 100 lbs.
“I’m glad he’s receiving the honour, the recognition. He’s a brave man, and doesn’t know it,” said Lockwood’s daughter, Joanne Reasbeck.
The book features portraits by photographer Yuri Dojc, who is no stranger to war stories.
“I’ve been working on projects like this in Europe, and I was photographing people who survived the Holocaust. Therefore, photographing soldiers would be a natural extension,” Dojc said.
The book was inspired by the death of Canada’s last known First World War veteran John Babcock last February and released to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.
The book officially launched Wednesday at the War Museum and is published by Chartwell, which has 150 seniors’ homes across North America. All 35 veterans and supporters profiled in the book currently live in their facilities.
The book costs $10 and the money will go to The War Amps Operation Legacy.
It can be purchased at Chartwell seniors’ homes and online at http://www.chartwellreit.ca
Kelly Roche - Storyteller 