Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Lasting Impact Of The Second World War

 A poignant display is found here: a Canadian flag is draped over the shape of a coffin, while a video screen plays footage of a funeral service decades after the Second World War, along with the recovery efforts that preceded it. 


The lost flight of Will Kyle and five other Canadians, whose plane went down over what had been called Burma at the time in 1945, was a mystery for decades. Photographs of his crewmates are here.


A hunter found the wreckage in the jungle in 1990. Five years later this was brought forward to the Canadian government. Items from the wreckage are in this case.


More pieces of the wreckage are encased in the walls and the floor nearby, with photographs of the jungle terrain they had been in. The bodies were recovered and given full honours in their burial, at a Commonwealth war cemetery: brothers in arms, resting in peace.


Coming out of the exhibit, one finds profiles of people after the war. Regina Rosenbaum survived Auschwitz and the Holocaust. She and her husband Berek came to Canada, started a new life and raised a family. Their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren are their legacy as survivors.


Bert Kahrel was one of the many who immigrated from the Netherlands after the War. Today he's a volunteer interpreter at the War Museum.


The Campbell brothers, who died within a month of each other, have been honoured by the naming of a town out west- Campbell Bay, Saskatchewan.


Doug Sam, who had survived the downing of his Halifax and returned to service, stayed in the military after the war, retiring two decades later a highly decorated lieutenant-colonel.


Irene Courtenay served as a nurse, as her father had served before her as a soldier. Following the war she worked as a nursing consultant and a professor.

As an exhibit, Forever Changed was very effectively done, precisely because it focused so strongly on personal stories of the Second World War. I enjoyed my visits each time I came through.

20 comments:

  1. And today I found the book Schindler´s List in a windowsill as give-away and took it home.
    War. People do remember. But do not learn. Or some, at least...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Many survived and many more lost their lives in wars.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hello,
    It is nice to read these people's stories! Take care, have a great day!

    ReplyDelete
  4. @Cloudia: definitely.

    @italiafinlandia: there is.

    @Iris: some more than others.

    @Nancy: that is true.

    @Eileen: thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Good stories, but the plane one is unique.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I enjoyed the exhibit too. Thank you for sharing, William!

    ReplyDelete
  7. ...the price of the war was high!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is a good exhibit to have. It is nice to hear what they did later.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Lots of brave people recognized here.

    ReplyDelete
  10. All did their part in the war. Different things had to be done as your post shows. Each part had to be done or other part were let down.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Debe ser escalofriante ver el vídeo delante de ese ataud.

    ReplyDelete
  12. We owe them all so much. A very poignant post William.

    ReplyDelete
  13. There is no reason for war except to save the homeland of free peoples.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Another great series of the WWII photos ~ great tribute ~


    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,

    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh that recovered wreckage and the long-delayed funeral display was so poignant . The forever changed display was fascinating as well -- I so admire the brave the people who lived through and created a beautiful new life.

    ReplyDelete
  16. @Anvilcloud: it's quite a story.

    @Marie: you're welcome.

    @Tom: very much so.

    @RedPat: it is indeed.

    @Sharon: definitely.

    @Red: that's true.

    @Mirada: thanks.

    @Denise: thank you.

    @Gemel: very much so.

    @Roentare: all too true.

    @Joanne: at least that war was the case.

    @Carol: thank you.

    @Sallie: very poignant.

    ReplyDelete