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Vet survived Dieppe and Beaver Trails three years in prison camp 3 · OAKVILLE BEAVER Thursday, August 27, 2009 Continued from page 1 to be sent to one of the three long term care facilities he had chosen. Today, family and friends are remembering Parkin's life in its entirety and not only the struggle he faced near its end. "He was a generous man, a hard working man. I don't think he ever missed a day of work," said his son, Doug Parkin. "He was quite a character, he had a good sense of humour." Doug noted his father was born in Newmarket, but moved to Oakville at the tender age of two Parkin would remain in Oakville for the rest of his life with the exception of when he was called away to fight in the Second World War. Life took a sad turn for Parkin during this period. On Nov. 8, 1941, his wife Francis died of pneumonia while Parkin was stationed in England. He was not permitted to return to Canada because he was training for the, then top-secret, Dieppe Raid. This 1942 raid into occupied France would go down in history as one of Canada's greatest military catastrophes with more than 900 Canadians killed and more than 1,800 taken prisoner. "He said it was a bloody disaster," said Wayne Parkin, Parkin's oldest son. "He was wounded twice. A bullet entered his right clavicle and blew out his left shoulder and he was also hit in the hip. At that point, he couldn't get back to the beach when they were told to withdraw and he was captured by the Germans." Parkin spent the next three years in a series of prison camps before being liberated by Russian soldiers in 1945. "I was six when he came home and I can remember that he looked so small to me," said Wayne. "The rations had been very poor." After the war, Parkin stayed with the army for a number of years serving as a driver. He married a woman named Beatrice with whom he had three more children. Eventually, Parkin settled on a career as a driver for Imperial Oil where he remained until his retirement in 1981. "He was a good man and he will be missed," said Doug. Parkin's funeral will take place today at 1 p.m. at the Kopriva Taylor Community Funeral Home, located at 64 Lakeshore Rd. W. Parkin is survived by his children Doug, Wayne, Dennis, Ken, Virginia and their families. BEAVER TRAILS TO BAHAMAS: Laura and Evan Lambert took the Oakville Beaver to Atlantis in Paradise Island, Bahamas. Take along a copy of The Oakville Beaver on your next vacation and send it in for publication to Beaver Trails, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4 or e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. Ren's Feed burglar foiled A would-be thief appears to have walked away empty handed following a break-in at a north Oakville feed store, early Wednesday morning. Police said the incident took place at around 1:15 a.m. when someone smashed a window at Ren's Feed & Supplies Ltd., 4002 Trafalgar Rd. Entering through the damaged window, the thief opened the three cash registers on the premises, but was disappointed when there was no cash to be found. "There is no cash kept on site and at this time nothing else appears to have been taken," said Sgt. Brian Carr, Halton police public affairs officer. Halton police responded to an alarm, which was triggered when the suspect smashed the window, but police were unable to locate the guilty party. Discover your new favourite destination! 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The 19-day cruise holiday commences in Venice and the rates are CAD1,999.00 for an Inside (Category 1/2/3) or CAD2,799.00 for a Superior Balcony (Category 10/11) Stateroom per person double. Transportation Taxes, Port and Security Fees are CAD595.00 per person. This option includes an 8-day Mediterranean cruise combined with a 10-day trans-Atlantic cruise. The 24-day tour and cruise holiday includes a land tour prior to the cruise. The tour begins in Rome and includes a 6day land tour of Italy, then the 8-day Mediterranean cruise and the 10-day trans-Atlantic crossing. Fares for the 24-day tour and cruise holiday start at CAD3,299.00 for an Inside (Category 1/2/3) or CAD3,899.00 for an Outside Balcony (Category 8) Cabin per person double. Transportation Taxes, Port and Security Fees are CAD595.00 per person. Other Categories are offered, please contact us for availability and fares. The MSC Poesia departs from Venice sailing across the Mediterranean with stops at Bari, Italy; La Goulette, Tunis; Malaga, Spain; Funchal, Madeira crossing the Atlantic to St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.; San Juan, Puerto Rico and ending in Ft. Lauderdale on 10NOV09. Both package prices include roundtrip airfare via Air Transat from Toronto to either Venice or Rome, returning from Ft. Lauderdale. For a copy of the Sunquest Mediterranean Cruise & Trans-Atlantic Crossing brochure and more information and on this outstanding cruise opportunity, please call us. OUTSTANDING TRANS-ATLANTIC CRUISE OFFER McTavish Travel · 905.827.1100 Hopedale Mall, 1515 Rebecca St., Oakville travel@mctavishtravel.com OR visit www.mctavishtravel.com Thank you Oakville Beaver Readers for selecting us as GOLD WINNERS for Best Lighing Store For home delivery & customer service call (905) 845-9742 Mon., Tues. and Thurs. 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Wed. 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Fri. 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Sat 10 a.m.-3 p.m. NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS call (905) 845-9742 or subscribe online @ www.oakvillebeaver.com FAN SALE RETAIL & WHOLESALE LIGHTING Oakville's Finest LIGHTING STORE in the Oakville Home Improvement District Ask about our FREE Installation OPEN SUNDAYS 243 Speers Road · Between Kerr & Dorval · Oakville, ON · 905.849.LITE (5483) · www.conceptlighting.ca Ont Reg No 1437985 Call us for reservations!