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Dedication
of Royal Canadian Air Force Memorial Memorial
Green, Roade Sunday 9th
November 2014 At
1.35 pm on the 29th June 1944, a Blackpool-built Vickers Wellington B.III
bomber, serial number HF641, of 22 Operational Training Unit took off from RAF
Wellesbourne Mountford, Warwickshire on a navigation exercise. On board were its crew of six men from the
Royal Canadian Air Force: F/O R J Andrews, Sgt W H Clark, Sgt A
H MacKimmie, Sgt J B Sollie, P/O C E Stephen and F/O P Very
few villagers remember this tragic event 70 years ago but these young men (one
just 18 years old) gave their lives for the same cause as our own Roade boys and
this memorial will ensure that their ultimate sacrifice will not be forgotten. Roade
Local History Society is arranging for the memorial to be installed with the
help of generous donations from Roade Parish Council and Remembrance
Service. The Remembrance Service begins
at 10 am at St Mary’s Church, which is always full. At about 10.40 various organisations march to
Memorial Green led by the Grafton
District Scout Band. Many people
wait outside the Church to go with the marchers and attend the rest of the
Service at the war memorial and all are welcome to do this. Traffic near Memorial Green is halted while
the Service takes place. After
the dedication all are welcome to attend an Exhibition about the
new memorial at the Methodist Church Hall.
The Exhibition will be open until 4 pm and refreshments will be
available. Come and learn about the airmen
and read residents' memories of the tragedy.
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