The Citizen, 2002-08-21, Page 9Memorial to the past
John Thomson, left, and Avrila Davidson of England were
presented with a special gift from Bob Potter of Londesboro
when they visited Clinton cemetery last week. (Janice Becker
photo)
Concentrating on the art
Kailey Wheeler enjoyed arts and craft time at Belgrave
Knox Vacation Bible School, Monday morning as several
children gathered at the church and WI Hall for fun and
learning. (Janice Becker photo)
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The Belgrave WMS held its
meeting in Monday, Aug. 12 at the
home of Ivy Cloakey.
Alice Nicholson led the reciting of
The Purpose then read a prayer.
Guide Me Thou Great Jehovah was
read in unison. Mrs. Nicholson led in
prayer followed by scriptures from
Freda Scott and Mrs. Cloakey.
Mrs. Nicholson read a story
relating to all the wonders of this
world.
Margaret Siertsema gave the
secretary report and Mrs. Cloakey
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the treasurer's report. The roll call
was answered with a verse
pertaining to harvest.
Forty visits to sick and shut-ins
were recorded.
Dini Nethery read a poem entitled
Apple Picking Time. A Garden is not
Just Blossoms was read by Irma
Mason. Mrs. Nicholson read Drop a
Pebble in the Water.
Rev. Cathrine Campbell closed the
meeting with prayer.There will be no
September meeting.
53 Women and Children
have been MURD ERED
in Ontario since June 2000
as a result of domestic violence.
We need YOUR HELP!
VOLUNTEER TRAINING-
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will be offered by the Women's Shelter, Second Stage Housing and
Counselling Services of Huron beginning Monday, September 9 at
7 pm. This free ten week training will be held at the Huron County
Health Unit Complex in Clinton.
For more information
and to register please call Tanya
524-5333 or 1 -800-265-5506
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THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21, 2002. PAGE 9
Area people help woman
find father's burial site
By Janice Becker
Citizen staff
What began as a simple comment
on a day of remembrance became a
trans-Atlantic trek and a quest to
find closure after more than 60
years.
Avrila Davidson was just a wee tot
in England when her father died. It
was 1941 and he was Flying Officer
Reginald Davidson Parker of the
Royal Air Force.
One might assume he was killed
in action during World War II, but he
wasn't. He died in an automobile
crash in Clinton while posted with
the Royal Canadian Air Force to
assist with the training of Canadian
personnel.
For 61 years, that was all
Davidson's family in England knew.
Then, last Nov. 11, after a
Remembrance Day service in
Shadwell, West Yorkshire, Davidson
casually mentioned to her partner
John Thomson that her family knew
little of their father's final resting
place.
Within minutes, Thomson was on
the internet, seeking information
from the British war records and
locating Clinton, Ontario.
A. letter was written to the War
Graves Office in London, seeking
confirmation of.the Clinton burial.
Soon a dispatch was sent to the
newspaper in Clinton as Davidson
sought help in locating her father's
grave.
Thanks to the efforts of
Londesboro war historian Bob
Potter and his wife Ann, Flying
Officer Reginald Davidson Parker's
stone was located and Davidson
notified.
"I was so excited, I rang
everyone," she said.
Frequent correspondence be-
tween Davidson, the Potters and two
other couples from the Clinton area
followed.
Even before responses were
received from Canada, Thomson
suggested a trip here and less than
10 months since that first comment
was made, the pair was on a flight
across the Atlantic.
Prior to their arrival, the Potters
spent considerable effort cleaning
and beautifying the grave. Flowers
were planted and a small Union Jack
flag was added to fly in honour of
the fallen man.
Upon their arrival in Clinton,
Davidson and Thomson spent some
time at the cemetery alone as well as
visiting with the local Anglican
minister so that a blessing could be
read.
They visited again later with the
Potters, remarking that words could
not adequately express how thankful
they are for what the couple had
done for Davidson's father.
During the cemetery visit, Bob
Potter presented Davidson with a
framed photo of her father, which
she had sent over earlier, three
medals which Parker would have
worn as an RAF Flying Officer in
Canada and an engraved plaque
with Parker's name and information.
Overcome by Potter's
thoughtfulness, Davidson said,
"This is just so wonderful. God had
his hands in this. We are now part of
one family. The old world has been
brought here."
Potter also presented her with
small momentoes from the Royal
Canadian Legion and loonies
depicting the War Memorial in
Ottawa.
For her part, Davidson also had a
wonderfully sentimental touch
which she added to the gravesite.
She had brought tiny stones from
her garden and those of several
family members in England to place
on her father's final resting spot. It
was like giving him a piece of his
homeland.
Because she is having more
difficulty travelling and her sister is
in ill health, Davidson believes this
is the only time Parker's children
will_be able to visit him. Davidson's
son from the Cayman Islands hopes
to make the trip north one day.
However, there is more to
Davidson's story than a father who
died overseas at the age of 35. The
car accident occurred Aug. 31, 1941
and he was buried Sept. 4. His wife
gave birth to Avrila's baby sister
prematurely on Sept. 3. The young
soldier never knew he had another
daughter.
However, -thanks to the efforts of
local residents such as the Potters
who not only took the time to locate
the headstone, clean it and plant
flowers around it, and have also,
tidied several other WW II stones at
the Clinton cemetery, the family
now has some peace of mind.
Thomson will be taking
information back with him
regarding other British soldiers
buried in the Clinton cemetery so
that he may try to locate their
relatives in England. He also
recorded information from a stone
of a Canadian soldier memorialized
at the cemetery, but buried
somewhere in England.
It is expected the connections
formed due to one brief comment
made in remembrance will continue
for years and may very well bring
closure to many other lives.