THE RIFLES REPORT

Monthly Update
August 2021

Serving Regiment Update

July has been a busy month for members of the serving Regiment.  There are many NCOs and Officers attending and instructing on Basic, Trade and Leadership courses at the 4th Canadian Training Centre in Meaford and the Greater Toronto Area for the 32 Canadian Brigade Group (CBG) Battle School.  In addition, RSM Johnston and I had the opportunity to virtually attend the Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (RCIC) conference for 3 days at the beginning of the month.

This month, we welcomed back Warrant Officer Behan and Captain Beaupre from Operation IMPACT in Jordan.  Both members were highly regarded and recognized for the work they did while in theatre.  We would also like to recognize MCpl Rowell for passing the challenging Jumpmaster Course at the Canadian Army Advance Warfare Centre (CAAWC).  In support of Operation VECTOR (the CAF support to the Federal and Provincial Governments' Request for Assistance in the fight against COVID-19), Cpl Tsoi was deployed with the Canadian Rangers to Deer Lake First Nation to help with vaccination and possible evacuation needs.

The Town of Giberville in Normandy, France held a commemorative ceremony on July 14th, 2021.  During the ceremony they unveiled a plaque in honour of the 23 members of the QOR that were killed in the fighting within the town 77 years ago.  Nicole and Honorary Captain Olivier Hoffer offered words on behalf of the Regiment; the ceremony can be viewed here: https://fb.watch/7axX30dCzG.

On July 27th, ten members of the Regiment participated in the unveiling of a plaque commemorating the Battle of Gapyeong at the Korean War Memorial at Meadowvale Cemetery in Brampton, ON.  In attendance were the Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Deuk Hwan Kim, Consul General of the Republic of Korea, and Don Sudden, President of the Korea Veterans Association of Canada Heritage Unit.

The 1860 Club continues to gain momentum;  Thank You letters and membership pins for donors are being mailed out this week, along with the Ridgeway and Normandy Challenge Coins.  I highly encourage all members of the Regimental Family to join the 1860 Club to receive regular updates about the Regiment.  

Lieutenant-Colonel Scott Moody, CD
Commanding Officer

IN REMEMBRANCE

It is with great sadness that I pass on news of the passing of Honorary QORA (Toronto Branch) member Jan de Boer from Sneek (Freisland), the Netherlands.

Jan and Annie were great supporters of The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada, looking after QOR Veteran Orville Cook, and were instrumental in the new monument at the Church in Sneek—where 6 Riflemen made the supreme sacrifice.

Jan would go to Holten Canadian War Cemetery every May 4th and put up pictures of all six Riflemen—A. Cockburn, W.L. Jackson, G.W. Ouderkirk, H.H. Pennell, Fr.R. Shepherd, and S.W. White—the QOR's last battle casualties of the Second World War.  Flowers from the QORA have been laid at the Sneek Marker in memory of Jan.

You will be missed. We Will Remember Him.

Brian Budden
President
Health & Welfare Chairman
QORA (Toronto Branch)

QOR of C Kit Shop 

If you are interested in purchasing QOR of C merchandise, you may do so via our online Kit Shop. We now have the ability to accept payment online. This month, we are pleased to offer a custom-made wall plaque featuring our cap badge.

Please visit the QOR Kit Shop here.

Our museum recently received a donation from the RCMP Detachment of Dawson Creek, BC.  An officer had seized a Colt .45 handgun during an investigation.  When that was completed, rather than destroy it, he contacted us because it was inscribed “Capt A.K. Haywood, M.O. 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade Canada”.

Captain Haywood joined the QOR as a Medical Officer in 1909; he enlisted at the outbreak of WWI and served as medical officer with the 3rd Battalion CEF during the 2nd Battle of Ypres.  You can read more about Dr. Haywood on our website.  We don’t know exactly how it ended up as part of a criminal investigation, but we appreciate the efforts of the officer in connecting with us and adding this piece of history to our collection.

Now that we are in Step 3 of the province’s reopening plan, we’ve started volunteering at the museum in person again and look forward to playing catch up after almost 16 months of absence!

If you have potential items for our Museum and Archive collection, please read this page and complete the online form, or contact us at museum@qormuseum.org.

Trust Fund and Fundraising Update 

Due to the COVID-19 restrictions over the past year, some of the planned activities and funding of projects have been put on hold.  For example, the re-installation of the Mont Sorrel markers in Belgium has not been carried out as originally planned.  It is hoped that this project will be started as soon as it is safe to do so.  Similarly, it was initially planned to establish markers for four of the casualties of the Fenian Raids who passed away due to disease contracted at Ridgeway.  Work on this initiative will commence as soon as practicable.

These are but two of the types of important works that are made possible through the generous donations to The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada Trust Fund.  Sadly, during this period of restrictions and closures, some of the traditional activities cannot continue—especially those that cannot be carried out by virtual means.  Nevertheless, they remain at the forefront of our preparations once activities return to normal.  We are extremely grateful to the members and friends of the Regimental family for their continuing support for the Regimental Trust Fund.

Since the launch of the 1860 Club, our members have donated over $100,000 to support The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada Trust Fund.  We would like to express our sincere gratitude for your generosity, and recognize the following members:

Normandy 1944 Donors
Over $186,000 in lifetime contributions 

HLCol Lionel Goffart, OStJ, CD 
Col Paul F Hughes, CD (Ret’d)

Vimy 1917 Donors
Over $18,600 in lifetime contributions

Capt Bernie Aaron (Ret’d)
HLCol Brendan Caldwell (Ret'd)
Lt J. Chris Donald (Ret'd)
Mr. Bryan Gransden
Capt Adam Hermant, OStJ, CD (Ret’d)
Hermant Family Foundation
HCol Larry Stevenson, CD (Ret’d)
LCol John Strathy, CD (Ret’d)
WO Philip ten Kortenaar, CD (Ret’d)
True Patriot Love Foundation

1860 Club Founders 

Col William Ball - US Army (Ret’d)
LCol William Barnard, CD (Ret’d)
Mr. Hans G. Bathija
Bruce Beauchamp Memorial Fund and Mr. Terry Beauchamp
Hon Col Bryan Brulotte, KJ, CD
Cpl Brian Buchan
2Lt Martin Bunch
LCol Greg Burton, CD (Ret’d)
HLCol Brendan Caldwell (Ret'd)
Maj Allan Champion, CD (Ret’d)
Capt Robert Chan, CD (Ret’d) and Ms. Annie Li
Ms. Linda Di Felice
Lt J. Chris Donald (Ret'd)
HLCol Lionel Goffart, OStJ, CD
Mr. Bryan Gransden
MCpl Robert Grieve (Ret'd)
Cpl Lee Harrison, CD (Ret’d)
WO David Hodgson, CD
MGen Walter Holmes, MStJ, MSM, CD, MBE (Ret’d)
Col Paul F Hughes CD (Ret’d)
Jackman Foundation
CWO Jeff Johnson, CD
LCol Frank Lamie, CD
MWO Darnel Leader, CD
Maj Samuel Leibel, CD
Capt Ben-Jaemin Lee, CD
Capt Roland Llewellyn-Thomas, CD
Mr. James Lutz
Maj Henry McCabe, MMM, CD (Ret’d)
Ms. Michele McCarthy
Lt David Merrithew
Mr. Nick Migliore
LCol Scott Moody, CD
Mr. Carmine Nigro
Capt David Pampe, CD
Lt Marco Petta
Cpl Sharl Robinson
CWO Mark Shannon, MMM, CD
MGen John Sharpe, CMM, CD (Ret’d)
Capt Kevin Sheedy, CD
Maj John Stephens, CD (Ret’d)
Mr. Tristan Strathy
WO Philip ten Kortenaar, CD (Ret’d)
Dr. Lynn Tomkins
Capt Usman (Uzi) Valiante (Ret'd)
LCol Tony Welsh, CD (Ret'd)
LCol Rob Zeidler, MStJ, CD (Ret'd)

Please click here to find out how to become a Founder. For more information on supporting the Trust Fund, please click here.

For any additional questions, please contact us.

Online Links

The QOR of C Regimental Association 
More information about The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada Association Branches can be found at:

Toronto Branch
https://www.facebook.com/qortorontoassociation 
East Coast Branch
https://www.qor-east.com
Calgary Branch
https://www.qorcalgary.com 
Vancouver Island Branch
https://www.qorvi.com

The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada Regimental Museum
https://qormuseum.org/
The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada Website
https://www.queensownrifles.com/

Kit Shop
https://sites.google.com/view/qorkitshop/

Submissions

To submit comments or content to the Rifles Report or The Powder Horn, please contact Martin Bunch, 1860 Club Communications Director at editor@1860club.ca