Gander: The Hero Dog of the Battle of Hong Kong
With today being Remembrance Day, I thought it would be a good idea to focus on something from Canada’s wartime past.
We are going to look back at the Battle of Hong Kong, which raged from Dec. 8 to 25, 1941, and was one of the first battles of the Pacific War during the Second World War. In this battle, Canadian soldiers defended the British crown colony from Japanese attackers. The Canadian troops faced overwhelming odds and 290 soldiers were killed, along with another 264 who died as POWs. Another 500 Canadians were wounded. One Canadian soldier, John Robert Osborn, was awarded the Victoria Cross for saving his men when he jumped on a grenade during the battle.
This episode is not about Osborn though, it is about Gander, a Newfoundland dog that became a hero of the battle.
Originally named Pal, Gander was a family pet that accidently scratched a child’s face with his paw. The family was worried that this would result in Pal being put down, so they gave him to the Royal Rifles of Canada, which was a regiment of the Canadian army that was stationed in Gander, Newfoundland. With his name changed to Gander, the dog was given the rank of sergeant and when the unit was shipped out to Hong Kong, Gander went with everyone else.
When the battle first began on Dec. 8, 1941, Gander and the rest of the unit were overwhelmed by Japanese invaders who attacked on three occasions over the next several days. In each occasion, Gander helped to fight off the Japanese, and protect injured men. According to Reginald Law, a rifleman from the battle, Gander would growl and run at the enemy soldiers when they approached, biting at their heels. Gander was so ferocious in his defending of the members of his unit, the Japanese would interrogate POWs after the battle and ask about the “Black Beast” that they fought with, and they asked if the Allies were training ferocious animals to fight in the war.
The third attack, which happened on Dec. 19, involved a grenade being thrown at the unit. Gander quickly picked up the grenade in his mouth, and promptly ran right back towards the Japanese with it. Sadly, the deed would take Gander’s life but it would help save the lives of the seven wounded soldiers he was protecting.
After the war was over, survivors of the battle insisted that Gander’s name be included among the names of the 1,975 soldiers on the Hong Kong Veterans Memorial Wall in Ottawa.
For his heroic efforts to save the men in his platoon, Gander was awarded the Dickin Medal in 2000, the first time it had been awarded since 1949. The medal is often referred to as the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross.
On July 23, 2015, a statue of Gander and his handler was unveiled at the Gander Heritage Memorial Park in Gander, Newfoundland.
Remembrance Day Gander, Newfoundland 2014
Parade leading to the Cenotaph at the Gander Memorial Heritage Park, Gander, Newfoundland
Remembrance Day, Gander, Newfoundland 2017
St. John's | Newfoundland | July 2018
St. John's, Capital of Newfoundland and Labrador
with its colorful houses
Reverand Wesley Oake
Reverend Wesley Oake talks about his first ever tandem parachute jump, completed at the age of 92. He agreed to allow me to share this video if I made sure to include the fundraising information for Gander Heritage Memorial Park, if which he is the patron and for which he fundraised by doing this parachute jump.
His particular link to the park is in relationship to the memorial to a Newfoundland Dog, Sergeant Gander. He told us as a young man of 18 years, he met and petted the dog many times.
This section begins as he's dangling his feet outside the plane, ready to jump, only the weekend before I met him on June 28, 2014.
Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
00:00:59 1 History
00:06:52 2 Geography
00:07:18 3 Demographics
00:08:05 4 Climate
00:08:44 5 Services
00:11:12 6 In popular culture
00:12:53 7 Planetary nomenclature
00:13:33 8 Public parks, walking and ski trails
00:16:33 9 See also
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Speaking Rate: 0.7953791150946601
Voice name: en-US-Wavenet-B
I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think.
- Socrates
SUMMARY
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Gander is a town located in the northeastern part of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of Gander Bay, 100 km (62 mi) south of Twillingate and 90 km (56 mi) east of Grand Falls-Windsor. Located on the northeastern shore of Gander Lake, it is the site of Gander International Airport, once an important refuelling stop for transatlantic aircraft, and still a preferred emergency landing point for aircraft facing on-board medical or security issues.
Most of the streets in Gander are named after famous aviators, including Alcock and Brown, Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, Eddie Rickenbacker, Marc Garneau and Chuck Yeager.
The Countryside of Newfoundland
An overview of Newfoundland showing the lakes, parks, and highways that entice you through the countryside. Blessed with fresh water and well treed expanses, this island known as the Rock has unique attractions, such as the airplane museum in Gander.
St.John's ,Newfoundland and Labrador,Canada
St.John's ,Newfoundland and Labrador,Canada
DownTown
Maritime of My Life (Pt. 72) - Terry Fox Memorial, St. John's, Newfoundland
July 10, 2017 - On April 12, 1980, then-unknown Terry Fox began his Marathon of Hope at this exact spot, at the edge of St. John's Harbour.
In 1977, he was diagnosed with cancer in his right leg, which was then amputated. Always an athlete, he trained in the coming years and then, in 1980, started his low-key Marathon of Hope in order to fundraise for cancer research. His goal was to run from St. John's, Newfoundland to Victoria, British Columbia, the capital of the province he called home, and running through all of Canada's 10 provinces from coast to coast.
The initial fundraising goal was $1 Million, then $10 Million, and then one dollar for every Canadian citizen at the time (24 million).
He averaged running a full marathon a day (42km) nearly every day from April 12, 1980 to September 1, 1980, when he was forced to stop just outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario, when the cancer had spread to his lungs. He immediately returned home to British Columbia.
He died on June 28, 1981, though his legacy has not been forgotten. Not only have countless monuments been erected in his name from coast to coast, but also roads, highways, schools, athletic centres, provincial parks, ships, and even a mountain in the Rocky Mountains of BC now all bear his name.
And of course, the Terry Fox Run has taken place every year from 1981 onwards, first in countless Canadian communities, but now in over 60 nations world wide.
The journey to Terry Fox becoming a Canadian legend and icon all started here, 13,603 days ago, when he first dipped his prosthetic leg into the chilly waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
Perspectives Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
St.John's Newfoundland Visit 2014
An introductory visit to St. John's, Newfoundland. July 2014
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1940s CANADA TOURISM MOVIE THIS IS CANADA QUEBEC ONTARIO NEW FOUNDLAND NEW BRUNSWICK 79534
THIS IS CANADA is a promotional tourism film produced by the Canadian National Railroad, highlighting the cities, sights, and incredible natural landscapes of Canada. The “tour” begins in its capital city, Ottawa, Ontario with footage of the Peace Tower (also known as the Tower of Victory and Peace) of the Houses of Parliament (01:15). A Royal Mounted Police officer stands on the steps of the parliament building (01:24). Inside the Peace Tower is the Memorial Chamber—a memorial to the Canadians who died in the Great War—and the Book of Remembrance (01:28). An aerial shot of the city (01:43), Rideau Hall (01:48), the U.S. Embassy (01:51), and the world-renowned hotel Chateau Laurier (01:54). The film then transitions to a narration of a man and woman from San Francisco. They start on The Narrows (02:13) leading into St. John’s Harbor at St. John’s, Newfoundland. There is footage of residential buildings in St. John’s (02:38). The tour then heads west across Newfoundland, stopping at Gander with its large airport (03:06), and Corner Brook (03:25) and its pulp and paper mill (03:27). Sydney on Cape Breton Island (03:36) is home to the region’s coal and steel industry (03:40). A boat trip along Bras d’Or Lake (03:50) reveals the summer home of Alexander Graham Bell (04:09). The landscape is similar to highlands of Scotland, and there are a number of Scots who live here now (04:30). Cape Breton Highlands National Park (05:02) has popular trails. The next stop is Nova Scotia with visits to Pictou Lodge (06:15) and the Nova Scotian Hotel (06:25) in Halifax. Prince Edward Island is reached aboard the Abegweit (06:59), a railway, vehicle, and passenger ferry that operates across the Abegweit Passage of Northumberland Strait. It is also the largest icebreaker in the world. Highlights of Prince Edward Island include Province House (07:24), Green Gables—the 19th century farm of Anne of Green Gables (07:40), and a golf course. The island has sandy beaches (08:01) where families swim, play, and picnic (08:27). St. John, New Brunswick (08:35) is the next stop, followed by Magnetic Hill (08:56) at Moncton, where an optical illusion makes it appear that cars are going uphill when, in fact, they are traveling downhill. The famous tidal bore (09:18), a wave that travels up the Petitcodiac River twice a day, is another must-see sight in New Brunswick. Taking a train (09:33) through Quebec Province provides rural scenes of a riverside town (09:57) and a waterfall (09:58). In Quebec City, viewers see footage of the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre (10:18), the Plains of Abraham (10:27)—site of Battle of the Plains of Abraham in 1759, the old walls of city (10:31). Crossing the famed Victoria Bridge (11:07) over the St. Lawrence River brings viewers to Montreal, arriving at Central Station (11:11; 11:47). Aerial views (11:25) show the Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral (11:30), bustling streets and stores (11:40), the first outdoor clock in North America (12:12), and the Bank of Montreal (11:56), the oldest bank in Canada. The next city is Toronto (12:23), a clock tower (12:28), historic buildings (12:35), and easy side trips to Niagara Falls (12:40) and Midland, Ontario (13:00), where a man builds a replica Huron long house. In Winnipeg, Manitoba (14:03), the film shows the Canadian National Railways building (13:54) and the city’s Fort Garry Hotel (13:55). Regina, Saskatchewan (14:18) is the next city, home to the historic Saskatchewan Legislative Building (14:30). North of Regina is Saskatoon (14:37), with the elegant Bessborough Hotel (14:41) and its Elizabethan Gardens and scenic river frontage on South Saskatchewan River, just up from Broadway Bridge (14:57). A stop at Edmonton (15:04) with a stay at the plush Hotel Macdonald (15:12) gives viewers an aerial view of oil fields (15:22). A train goes through the Canadian Rockies (15:50) and arrive at Jasper, Alberta (16:07) and Jasper Park Lodge (16:30), where a black bear strolls along the golf course (17:00) and a deer explores the lodge grounds (17:05). The Columbia Icefield (17:20) is the featured side trip from Jasper, where people climb or ride horses on the glacial ice (17:24). From Jasper, passing the imposing Mt. Robson (17:39), viewers are taken to the final two stops of the film: Vancouver (17:56) and Victoria (18:21), British Columbia. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit
Raising US Flag Wild Adventures 2019
Opening at Wild Adventures includes praises to US Military and raising the US Flag to the National Anthem while everyone stands with hands over their hearts. Justin gives us a little dance of excitement.
Walking outside of the stephenville mall
This is me walking by the stephenville mall
This mall and the Walmart over there is pretty awesome
Enjoy
Grenfell Campus Summer Accommodations
If you're going to be visiting Western Newfoundland for your next vacation, be sure to check out what Grenfell Campus offers in terms of accommodations. Located within the city of Corner Brook, Grenfell Campus offers a relaxing, inviting and affordable stay.
Memorial Day Parade 1991
Memorial Day Parade from Kenton Local Access Channel's recording of the live broadcast May 27, 1991
Special thanks to Kathy and Eve for the commentary.
Hell in Hong Kong
The Battle of Hong Kong (December 8 - 25, 1941) was the first place Canadians fought a land battle in the Second World War. For more on the Battle of Hong Kong, read War Crimes by Nathan M. Greenfield, here
Tom & Alan Doyle, Berry Picking Time, Evening Of Doyles, Masonic Hall, St. John's. Newfoundland
Alan and his Dad perform a Doyle Family favourite during the Evening Of Doyles show at the Masonic Hall in St. John's, Spring 2006.
Heritage Minute: John Robert Osborn
Directed and produced by Zach Ribau. Actors: Graham Beer and Ryan Isto
Here & Now Thursday December 20 2018
Here & Now - Every day, around Newfoundland and Labrador, Debbie Cooper and Anthony Germain, and the entire Here and Now team pull out all the stops to cover your news and weather. If it's happening now, you'll see it here.
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