From 1919 to 1970 Canadian government policy prohibited the return of human remains—military or civilian—to Canada, even at the expense of the next of kin. In stark contrast, the American forces have gone to extremes returning bodies to their native land.
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On January 13, 1956, Keith and Dorine Roberts, based at RCAF Grostenquin, France, celebrated the birth of their daughter, Hope. The happy occasion was short lived. Their first child died 10 weeks later at the RCAF hospital at Zweibrucken, Germany. Burial took place at the city’s main cemetery. (hauptfriedhof). The couple felt some comfort that the grave would receive ‘perpetual care’, an arrangement made possible by a one-time payment of $100. "It was a huge sum for a corporal at that time," Keith recalls.
With the closing of 3 Fighter Wing the Roberts were left to wonder if their daughter’s grave would indeed be cared for. Recent inquiries via the Air Force Association opened a much wider story on the plight of dependents’ graves in Europe. The first word of the neglect that befallen the Canadian plots came from a Luftwaffe Lieutenant Colonel who commented several years ago to Fred Aldworth of the Association that he had discovered the graves unkempt and overgrown with moss. He undertook to clean the section up himself.
The most recent interest was again concentrated in Zweibrucken. Cement grave tablets had attracted moss which accelerated spoilage to the extent that some could be read only by taking rubbing imprints. Following on the original work by the Luftwaffe officer, considerable effort was made by Major Jean-Maurice Pigeon, Reserve Heritage Officer at 4 Wing, Borden, whose mother came from Zweibrucken. He worked with Klaus Fischer, coach of the local hockey team, who had players recruited for the cleanup. (Many local Germans learned to play hockey from the 3 Wing personnel. The Peter Cuningham Arena was donated to the city on the Canadians’ departure.) The cleanup proceeded with difficulty because of wet weather last spring.
But more help was on the way. A naval choir from Germany visited Zweibrucken’s twin city of Barrie, Ontario. One of its members, Helmut Herzig, offered to clean up the plots, unaware of the Fischer plans. But when he began discussions with the city he was told that a Canadian official had ordered no further work on the cemetery. A contractor had been engaged to restore the graves. New granite monuments were to be installed.
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There are at least 1,370 Canadians buried in postwar Europe. Many of their graves are now abandoned and without a marker to indicate that they ever existed. They were postwar Service personnel as well as their wives and children who died during postings to Air Division and Army units.
Oversight, confusion, ignorance or a combination of them all, has left these Canadians in French and German graves which, in many cases, have been ‘leveled’ upon the expiry of their leases. Graves in Canada are established in perpetuity. Graves in Europe are not. So stands a cultural anomaly that has been difficult for Canadians to understand. The leveling of a grave means its elimination. That space will then be used for another interment.
For many bereaved families there will be comfort in knowing that efforts are under way to right a situation that has blighted the respect due to the Cold War innocents. Their scattered graves are now undergoing an intensive program of location, identification and rehabilitation. It is this program that put the Zweibrucken cleanup on temporary hold.
The DND team charged with the massive job is led by J.A. (Gus) Turner, Director of Realty and Engineering Policy, along with Fran MacBride, Senior Advisor. Their team was formed long after abortive efforts in the 1970s and 1980s to establish just who should be responsible for these graves. Awareness of the problem came more sharply into focus in 1994 when Canadian Forces Europe began to question the situation at the Zweibrucken cemetery. It had become evident that the graves of 146 wives and children there had fallen into deplorable condition. Who was responsible for their upkeep? Next of kin were no longer in the area. Responsibility of Veterans Affairs was omitted because Order in Council PC 1965-688 restricted that department’s activity to Armed Forces members only, not their dependents. National Defence finally sought waiver to their ‘no obligation’ status.
Here are some of the complexities:
The Department of National Defence has entered into negotiations to renew leases, or enter into leases where none were in place, at various locations in Germany, France, Belguim and the U.K.. The objective is to preserve graves and prevent further loss. Memorial cairns will be installed at public expense during the summer of 2002 in each of the cemeteries. Where graves have been leveled, a cairn will commemorate those known to have been interred there. In addition, individual grave marker restoration is being carried out as required.
Keith and Dorine Roberts say that after nearly half a century their ‘hearts have been put at rest’ knowing that their first child’s grave will no longer exist under the threat of neglect. For all bereaved, a web site is under construction that will allow internet viewing of the cemeteries and individual monuments.
-- Submitted by Norman Avery