Ralph, for those who don’t know, is our oldest SENIOR BLADES member. He now resides in Winnipeg Canada and until a couple of years ago used to travel to the U.K. each year to visit family and friends and of course to see the Blades over Xmas and stay till Easter.
Ralph contacted us recently, to tell us about completing the first anniversary of living in the second century of his life. He says, ” one might expect that everything would be winding down, but as things turned out it was perhaps the most active year of my life “. Hardly a day passes without some engagements, presentations or interviews on T.V. or radio.
The following are just a few of the highlights of a memorable year. Ralph was escorted to the ‘Battle of Britain ‘ parade by Major General J.P.A. Pelletier Commander of the 1st Canadian Air Division where he laid a wreath on behalf of fallen comrades and also read ‘ Lest We Forget ‘. The event was featured on National Television.
At the Convention Centre on November 11th he was again asked to lead the ‘ Passing of the Torch ‘ ceremony and being told that he was probably the only survivor living in Canada who served in the ‘ Battle of Britain ‘ he received a standing ovation from the crowd of over 5000.
In October Ralph was featured at the Winnipeg Jets ‘ Armed Forces Night ‘ and during the intermission he was interviewed on National Television, after the game he was front and centre of a group photo taken with the team and a large number of members from all branches of the Armed Services.
May 12th 2020 is Manitoba’s 150th birthday and on the 14th December 150 days before the event. The Maniotoba Legislative hosted the ‘ Illuminate 500 ‘ where Ralph was asked to throw the switch and the grounds were lit up by over 300,000 Led lights. It was a bitterly cold night but the lights were beautiful.
At the annual sports day at GULL LAKE Ralph once again won the race for the over 100 year olds ( he was the only competitor ) And with the Blades in the top half of Premier Laegue he can now watch the Blades live on T.V. just like he used to back in Sheffield. Also on a high note Ralph has been a keen supporterof the Winnipeg Blue Bombers since 1950 and was delighted last year when they finally won the Grey Cup in Calgary after 29 years. GO BOMBERS GO.
Currently many TV, radio , personal interviews and engagements are being conducted regarding Ralph’s seven years of wartime service in the Royal Air Force.