Penny:
THANKS. I put in their file notes in my program.
Dave
On 13-07-31 11:57 AM, "Penny Lane" <plane001@...> wrote:
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> Hi Dave, Some more info for Harold Walter Lowe, perhaps of interst to someone?
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> NEW GLASGOW - The year was 1942. Harold Lowe was working as a telephone
> repairman in Antigonish and seeing his sweetheart, Leona. Around him, all the
> other young men were joining up to help with the war effort, but Lowe´s job
> was considered an essential service and he didn´t have to go.
> But that didn´t stop Lowe, then 19. A strong sense of duty had him following
> in the footsteps of two of his great-uncles, who were sea captains in the
> Navy, and his uncle to join the navy. He married Leona and shipped out shortly
> afterwards as an able seaman.
> ``It wasn´t too long after the first war, and back then we just wanted to get
> the war over with,´´ he said. ``I think we were all kind of thinking, `why
> didn´t they just finish this the first time around?´´´
> Lowe was assigned to HMCS Restigouche, which was on convoy duty in the North
> Atlantic. Lowe spent many an hour behind the wheel of the ship, as well as
> working as a gunner and quartermaster.
> The Atlantic Ocean was one of the main battlegrounds of the war. Hundreds of
> Allied sailors and merchant mariners, and their German counterparts, met their
> ends in the swirling waters. The Royal Canadian Navy and RCN Volunteer
> Reserves numbered only 366 officers and 3,477 men at the beginning of the war
> in 1939, but by 1945 the numbers grew to 96,000 men and women with over 400
> ships.
> ``We were only as fast as our slowest merchant ship,´´ Lowe recalled.
> ``Sometimes it would take us two weeks to get across.´´
> Many a time the ship was caught in a tight spot, he said.
> ``We were in quite a bit of action. We had torpedoes fired at us. We used to
> have metal strung out behind the ship because the torpedoes would go towards
> the noise from that instead of blowing up the engine,´´ he said.
> If the metal was struck, they´d quickly throw out another piece to act as
> another diversion while they tried to figure out the location of the German
> U-Boat. Generally, he said, by the second torpedo, they´d be able to detect
> the ship.
> That wasn´t the only risk, however. Not only did they have to keep an eye on
> the sea - and under it - they had to watch from above as well as they were
> bombed from planes. Lowe can vividly recall one time when a bomb was dropped
> just three meters from the ship. Thankfully, he said, it didn´t go off.
> ``That was lucky,´´ he said. ``Another time, they blew a hole in the after
> mast. I was in the after magazine, handing out the cordite to the 4.7-inch
> guns. That was close, I guess. The fellow from above was looking after us.´´
> Being separated from his wife was also difficult. They would write, but
> censors blacked out many of Lowe´s words, and they would get batches of
> several letters at once.
> Luckily, Lowe would return to Halifax frequently while on convoy duty and
> would be given 48 hours leave while new ships were maneuvered into position.
> He didn´t linger in the city, instead hopping on a train and heading home to
> his sweetheart in Antigonish.
> ``A fellow from he Royal George Hotel would meet the train in the middle of
> the night and he always gave me a ride home. I´d get in, spend the day and go
> back, but it was great to get home.´´
> During D-Day, Lowe was stationed in the English Channel, ferrying troops to
> the beaches.
> ``It just seems like yesterday, but it was 66 years ago since D-Day,´´ Lowe
> said. ``I´m glad I went through it, but I wouldn´t want to go through it
> again.´´
> In 1946, Lowe was discharged and came home for good. The father of three
> eventually settled in New Glasgow 40 years ago and has been active in the
> community since. A lifetime member of the Royal Canadian Legion, he´s served
> on just about every committee and as president, and is also active in three
> local choirs.
> ``Being the president of the legion took my shyness away,´´ he admits with a
> grin, telling tales of the many times he´d been thrust into the spotlight to
> make a speech unprepared. ``I figured, if this was how it was going to be,
> whatever´s going to come I´ll do it.´´
> Now 86, Lowe is proud to announce that he doesn´t take a pill and keeps active
> by riding two kilometers on a stationary bike every day, as well as doing
> sit-ups and bend-overs. He loves to do crossword puzzles in the paper and is
> quick to point out the portraits of his nine grandchildren and 11
> great-grandchildren, proudly displayed on the mantel.
> Earlier this month, a representative from Veteran´s Affairs notified Lowe that
> he had been nominated to receive the Ministers of Veterans Affairs
> Commendation.
> The commendation is awarded to individuals who have performed commendable
> service to the Veteran community and who represent commendable role models for
> their fellow veterans.
> Lowe, along with his daughter, Nancy MacKenzie, will attend a service in
> Halifax that will see Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Minister of Veterans Affairs,
> decorate the recipients with the commendation.
> ``It´s an honour,´´ Lowe said about receiving the award. ``I can´t find out
> who nominated me - they said that´s a secret. I´m excited about it, it´s nice
> of them to recognize me for something.´´
> [ SOURCE: THE NEWS NEW GLASGOW, MON., JUNE 28, 2010]
>
> His wife:
> Annetta Leona Arbuckle 1 June 1923 - 13 Feb 2004
> Halifax Herald 2/15/2004
> LOWE, Annetta Leona ""Nonie"" - 332 Mitchell St., New Glasgow, formerly of
> Malignant Cove and Antigonish, passed away at home Friday, February 13, 2004.
> Born June 1, 1923, in Antigonish, she was a daughter of the late Herbert and
> Annie Ida (Arbuckle) Arbuckle. Leona was a life member of the Branch 34 Royal
> Canadian Legion Ladies Auxiliary, a life Member Partner of Telephone Pioneers
> of America, past member of the I.O.D.E., F.E. Group Trinity United Church, and
> Branch 34 Royal Canadian Legion Choir. She was a member of Trinity United
> Church and was a former Sunday School teacher and C.G.I.T. leader. She is
> survived by husband, Harold W. Lowe; sons, Charles H. (Mary), Antigonish;
> Aldren A.(Paula), Antigonish; daughter, Nancy M. (John David) MacKenzie,
> Churchville; grandchildren, Paul, Darryl, Heidi, Jeffrey, Allison, Christen,
> Jaime, Tanya, and Brittany; eight great-grandchildren; brother, Arthur
> (Loretta) Arbuckle, Malignant Cove. She was predeceased by brother, Clarence;
> sisters, Olivia Adams and Verna Chisholm. Visitation 2-4, 7-9 p.m. today in
> R.H Porter Funeral Home, New Glasgow. Funeral service 2 p.m. Monday, February
> 16, in Trinity United Church, Lori Crocker D.M. officiating. Burial in
> Abercrombie Cemetery at a later date. Donations to a charity of choice.
> Penny Lane, July 30, 2013
>
> Be who you are and say what you feel ... because those that matter... don't
> mind ...and those that mind ...don't matter!
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