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Sunday Novem ber 14, 1999 Oakville Beaver Weekend f t 1* ? FROM ONE GENERATION TO ANOTHER Naval veterans of WWII bring images of lost youth to school By Kathy Yanchus SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER With stirring recollections and a few tears, members of the Burl Oak Naval Veterans made Remembrance Day this year, and for many years to come, a little more meaningful. Their audience, a group of Grade 10 White Oaks Secondary School students and teachers, listened intently, laughed at the humor injected into some of the stories and milled around grand models of a frigate, corvette, destroyer and a U-boat while the veterans pointed out their positions. They spoke of their lost youth and naivete, cramped quarters, rough seas and comrades lost. The role of the Royal Canadian Navy in the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II - "the longest battle in the war" was a crucial one, said veteran Ray Richardson. "England stood alone against the Nazis and the only way the country could survive was with supplies from North America." All four of the visiting veterans served on escort ships which surrounded convoys of up to 100 or more merchant ships across the mighty Atlantic Ocean. German Uboats would shadow the convoys through out the day and surface at night. "We had two enemies," said Richardson. "The elements and the U-boats." Between January and March, the ocean proved "an unforgiving mistress." Corvettes were not enclosed and boats were dwarfed by fierce waves causing epidemics of sea sickness. Inches of ice had to be chipped away or the ship would overturn. Then there was the "black hole", the area in the Atlantic where land-based aircraft sweeping the waters for enemy craft, could not reach. "The U-boats concentrated in this area. We lost one-and-a-half million tons of mer chant shipping," said Richardson. Veteran Alex Bramson was one of 50 seamen living in cramped quarters aboard a frigate during the Battle. "There were four tables, no chairs. We slept in hammocks. There weren't enough hammocks so some men slept on lockers, on the tables or on the floor," recalled Bramson. "We had three meals a day if you could call them that." None of the four cooks recruited were actually chefs, one was a used-car sales man, another a truck driver and still anoth er, a high school graduate, said Bramson. Water was scarce. "We never took a shower because we didn't want to take our clothes off in case the bell went off. In rough seas, dishes would break and there would be less dish__ » » es. The lucky ones who ate first had clean dishes, the rest, dirty ones, he said. Veteran Martin Franchetti told a moving story of why he joined the navy. After see ing the wounded World War I vets with legs and arms amputated, Franchetti said his thinking was that if his ship was downed, he would drown in the frigid Atlantic waters. "I wanted to come home in one piece or not at all," he said. "I said I'm not going in the army, but the navy. I'm not going to Photo by Peter C. McCusker Burl-O ak N aval Vets A lex Bram son and Bob H anson talk w ith C arolyn Brow n and K ulvinder Juss about a G erm an U -B oat m odel built by G erh ard t B eck w ho w as a U -B oat C om m ander during the war. T he naval vets talked to W hite O aks students about their experiences in the B attle o f the A tlantic. come back a cripple." Franchetti joined the navy at 19, as a sonar operator. "On our first trip, we had no idea what it was like on the Adantic Ocean in the mid dle of November, no idea," said Franchetti. "Our longest crossing was 21 days." At the end of two months, Franchetti had lost 20 pounds and his gums were bleeding. "It was like I could pull my teeth right out," he said. With a chuckle, Franchetti recalled his dentist telling him he would be fine if he just ate fresh fruit. Where was he to get fresh fruit in the middle of the ocean, he remembers retorting. "We did the best we could." The students empathized with Franchetti's repulsion as he recalled episodes of seasickness followed by rations of sardines. "Before we went to sea I remember the crew was all quiet. We were all thinking, will we ever get back," recalled an emotional Franchetti. "It was like being in front of a firing squad 24 hours a day. I learned to pray then and I still pray now." Gunner Bob Hanson joined the Navy because he felt it his duty to join the ser vices as his father had before him. "I thought it would be a great way to see the world and meet girls," he said with a smirk." This was Canada's finest hour, said Richardson, and it's important that this his tory is taught to the up-and-coming genera tion. "We believe this is an important topic, to share the history and sacrifices of their grandfathers during these turbulent times," commented Bramson. "Since the education system does not teach this history, we have an obligation to do so." M to n , o u r ^ M a in te n a n c e J lla n a q e r , le a c e s n o i l l in c j to c h a n c e a s h e p r e p a r e s J o r c fa n /a s a r r i c a l o n C lM e d n e s d a ij. It's not just Ron, everyone at Oakville Place is excited about Santa's arrival. So make sure you bring your children to the SantaScape in Centre Court on Wednesday, November the 17th at 6pm as the magician Rossini casts a spell over everyone and sets the stage for Santa's magical appearance.