WILLIAM A. CURRAN

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WILLIAM A. CURRAN 1924.July.22 - 2003.June.20 Following a brief but feisty battle with cancer, Dad died peacefully in his sleep on Friday, 20 June 2003 at Langley Memorial Hospital, Langley, BC, 5 weeks shy of his 79th birthday. William Arthur Nelson Curran, best known as Bill, was born 22 July 1924 in Winnipeg to Pearl (Colburn) and David Curran, the youngest of three children. David died six weeks later, leaving Pearl as a single parent until after the war. He was predeceased by his mother (1972), brother Garnet David (1974), beloved wife Winnifred (Gibson) and stepfather Harold Bartlett (1982). He is survived by his loving family including son, Bradley and daughter Pamela (Mitch) Ladelle and two lovely grandchildren, Lynelle and Ferral; brother-in-law Tom Gibson; sister Ruby Benwell; niece Marion (Maurice) Mearon and grand-nieces Sarah and Heather, nephews David and Bob Curran, half-brother Lloyd Colburn and numerous other relatives. Dad is also survived by his loving and very dear companion of 12 years, Hazel Hughes, as well as her son Geoff (Anita) and grandchildren Michael, Christa, baby Colman and furry friend Emily The Cat. Hazel and her late husband Charlie were Matron of Honor and Best Man at our parents wedding in 1954, destined to find each other again later in life when both were widowed. Dad joined the Royal Winnipeg Rifles Battalion of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division when he was 18 and took part in the Invasion of Normandy (D-Day) commencing 06 June 1944. It was one hell of a way to grow up, and I grew up fast! He saw action in France, Belgium and Holland. After the liberation of Holland in May 1945, he was billeted with a Dutch family in Utrecht and formed an enduring friendship with their daughter, Addy Luitjens (now Wierenga, of Lisse, Holland) - symbolic of the bond between Holland and Canada. Following his return to Winnipeg on New Years Eve 1945, Dad worked as a telegraph bicycle messenger and got to know the city better than any map could ever hope to import. He seemed to know every building on every street and a little snippet of their history to boot. In 1947 he joined CP Rail and worked there as a switchman and later yard foreman for 37 years, taking early retirement in 1985. Dad was blue collar, doing tough outdoor shift work under all weather conditions - and always provided for our family. He wanted his children to get an education and do better than he did; we always wanted him to know that blue or white made no difference. Dad did not complete high school; rather, his destiny was to fight for freedom and to pass on his knowledge and experience while picking up more than equivalency along the way. He also participated in the Korean War, in 1952-53. Not surprisingly, two favorite TV shows were Hogans Heroes and M*A*S*H, yet nothing got Dad laughing more than Fawlty Towers. Vitriol like, You CAN see the sea: its over there, between the land and the sky! always had him in stitches. In addition to longtime membership in the Royal Winnipeg Rifles Association, he was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion (St. James Branch), Korean Veterans Association, The Odd Fellows Grand Lodge and United Transportation Union. Bill made three trips to England, Normandy and Holland, in 1984, 1989 and 1994, for D-Day anniversary observances. He was deeply honored when asked to speak to Dutch schoolchildren in Leiden about his wartime and liberation experiences, and often lamented Canadian kids comparative lack of knowledge about what the world had experienced. In 1983, the centennial year of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, Dad received a personal letter from HRH The Prince of Wales (Charles), the battalions C-in-C, thanking him for his years of devoted volunteer services to the RWR museum and kit shop located at Minto Armoury. Many thanks to the staff of Langley Memorial Hospital, Royal Columbia Hospital (New Westminster) and Surrey Cancer Care Clinic for their compassion and care during Dads illness, the brevity of which is both a shock and a blessing. In lieu of flowers, and in respect of my fathers passion for Memories of D-Day, donations may be made to The Juno Beach Centre, 2407 Woodward Avenue - Unit 24, Burlington, ON L7R 4J2 or c/o Bradley J. Curran, 2704-55 Nassau Street North, Winnipeg, MB R3L 2G8, in memory of William A. Curran (H59923). Juno Beach was the code name for one of the five Allied Forces landing sites, and a newly opened museum at Courseulles-sur-Mer, Normandy, France bears its name. In accordance with Bills wishes, cremation has taken place. A Memorial Service will be held at The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 21, 20702 Eastleigh Crescent, Langley, BC at 11:00 am, Friday, 27 June 2003. A second Memorial Service will be held at The Royal Canadian Legion St. James Branch, 1755 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg at 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, 02 July 2003. Padre Maxwell Ryan officiating. (Private interment will occur at a later date). Dad, Bill: Little Black Devil, may you always have a Blast.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 27, 2003