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Photo by Peter C. McCusker Ron Danks, Martin Franchetto and Tom M cCabe (from left), of the Burl-Oak Naval Veterans, love to reminisce about the war. This Corvette model brings back memories. Remembering the navy By Sandra Omand SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Gale force winds, 50 foot waves, ships being tossed around like toys and all the while wondering if it was the storm that was going to kill you or a torpedo from an enemy submarine. Stories like these and other tales of hardship, camaraderie and incredible feats can be overheard every Wednesday at the Royal Canadian Legion, alternating between the Bronte and Burlington Legions, when the Burl-Oak Naval Veterans get together. `T o sit with these guys and hear these stories they tell, and they don't talk about it much, is just incredible," said Ron Danks, 67, secretary-treasurer and one of the few members who is post-war navy. The 40 veterans, of which 95% have served in World War II while the remaining 5% served in Korea or are post-war, meet weekly for lunch and to discuss ways of preserving Canada's naval traditions. "We swap stories and share ones you can't talk about with others," said Martin Franchetto, 76, who served on HMCS Vancouver and HMCS Moncton as a sonar operator from 1943-1945. Stories Franchetto and some of the others share often describe difficult and frightening experiences especially among the many members who served aboard Corvettes. "These guys went through hell for 47 cents a day or thereabouts," said Danks. Franchetto said while on the Corvettes they were constantly wet with water slopping around everywhere, saturating clothing, food and personal belongings. There was also no fresh air below decks because the port holes were boarded and air vents closed while at sea. With a dozen men crammed into a space not much larger than an average living room and no showering facilities and no fresh air, Franchetto said the mess deck would gather unpleasant odours after a few days at sea. "Because we couldn't breath in there we'd sit around the funnel and the heat would keep our back warm and dry while the boilers below would keep our bottoms dry," said Franchetto who was only 19 years old when he chose to join the Navy because he was a good swimmer and had sailed on Lake Ontario. "I didn't realize what I was getting into on the North Atlantic," said Franchetto. (See `Men endured . . .' page 7) f t t 'O l 'S ' AflO tlt lo / t C lt - IfOU, '/ /fu ll/. . . High Prices GivingYou Indigestion? W e C a n H e lp ! October 12th- 16th Jeans from $5.99 Sweaters from $2.99, Shoes from $2.99 Jackets from $5.99, Kidswear from 99^ The Makings of a G reat Costume for under $ 10 YellowTags 50% o ff 4 9 5 B ran t S t B u rlin g to n 3 5 6 K err S t., S ta r r in g DOUGLAS CHAMBERLAIN TAMARA BERNIER PAUL McQUILLAN STEPHANIE CADMAN STEPHEN GUY-McGRATH KELLI TROTTIER TIFFANIE BELL DENNIS LUPIEN STEPHEN PATTERSON Emotm Produce DONNA SCHWAB BoctAOKOhonor TED DYKSTRA M i r SERGIO TRUJILLO MwcDy CHARLES T COZENS o*cna, ALLEN M ac INNIS *··7 : ft · · · ft ft ' ft ft * * . » ft * ft ft i - .* .* /· , . .* A A A A * t