Veteran, 92, remembers lost comrades on Battle of the Atlantic anniversary
Ron Waddleton was just 17 when he joined the navy during the Second World War
As ceremonies are held across Canada on Sunday to mark the anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic, Ron Waddleton thinks of the friends he lost.
Waddleton was just 17 when he joined the navy in 1941. He was on convoy duty, escorting ships carrying vital cargo and troops across the Atlantic until the Second World War ended in 1945.
"You have a lot of fond memories of your comrades," he said, remembering the friendships he formed as he and his fellow sailors crossed an ocean where German and Italian submarines lay in wait.
The Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Merchant Navy combined lost more than 103 ships with 3,600 lives lost during the war. The Royal Canadian Air Force lost more than 900 aircrew during the battle for the North Atlantic, the longest single campaign of the war.
Waddleton says there are fewer and fewer veterans each year in Halifax for the anniversary ceremonies, which are held on the first Sunday in May.
"This is probably one of my last chances to get here, I'll be 93 next month," he said.
He said there are fewer than 11 Second World War veterans left in his Royal Canadian Legion branch in Lower Sackville, N.S.
But he said he is heartened to see the many young sailors who pay their respects at the Sailors Memorial in Halifax's Point Pleasant Park on the anniversary.
"It's very important to remember the past, because the past is your future," Waddleton said. "They are the future, we're passing on the torch to them. They're doing a good job and I'm very proud of them."
With files from Steve Berry