Lakeview Honour Scroll
Honour Scroll displayed at Lakeview School, Regina.
REM partnered with Lakeview school in November of 2021 to collect information on the Veteran Honour scroll that is within the school. We will be sharing some of the info we found on the individuals listed on the scroll. First, we will tell you a bit of the history around the scroll. There are thousands of “For King and Country” World War II honour scrolls on display in schools, churches, legion halls and community centres across Canada. These screenprints were designed by the Group of Seven artist, A. J. Caso. They are decorated with an intricate coat of arms, the phrase “For King and Country”, and have several columns of the inscribed names of men and women who were connected to the school through being either student or staff, and fought in Europe or Asia during WWII.
Women of the War: The details of how these women were directly involved in war efforts is not specified in public records. All of these women were teachers either during the later 1930’s or the 1940’s. There names are M. Brown, A. Graham, B. Horn, R. Houston, L. Innes, W. Kirk, F. Metheral, M. Wismer, and E. Weir. There are records showing that M. Brown, A. Graham, and R. Houston started active service in 1942.
Unfortunately, the history of many of the people on the scroll has been lost. These are the of names on the scroll in which there is nothing in public record; D. Burgess, V. Bettschen, A. Derby, W. Herbert, R. Johnson, J. Mills, J. Ross, and G. M. Taylor.
The following is some of the individuals we could find information on:
J.D. Armstrong, Photo from Regina Leader Post Archives.
Honorary Scroll Veterans: Lieutenant Commander J. D. Armstrong was the Principal at Lakeview School throughout the 1940’s until 1946. Armstrong was highly involved with the school board and replaced E.F. Holliday in 1941 as the director of Visual Education when Holliday was sent to war. He led the selling of war stamps at Lakeview schools, which the school was awarded a shield for the prize in a war savings competition. Lakeview school was subscribing as high as $300 per month (what would be $5,000 today) for the purchase of certificates and stamps. Armstrong was the principal of Lakeview school until August 1943, when he was granted a leave of absence to join the Navy as a sub-lieutenant in the R.C.N.V.R. He resigned as the Lakeview principal in 1946 to enlist permanently in the Navy. In the Navy he continued being an educator. He took part as a senior schoolmaster in an educational schedule launched by the Royal Canadian Navy at its West-coast base H.M.C.S. Naden. In charge of the teaching staff, Armstrong organised a course that recognized the need for an educational scheme which included modern naval technology with a good base knowledge in maths, science and english. Armstrong commented on the course, “While our objective in designing these courses is primarily to expedite technical training, they can also provide any sailor with a well-rounded education. Our intermediate and higher tests are equivalent to junior and senior matriculation”. It is obvious by Armstrong’s language that throughout his career he had a passion for sharing knowledge.
Photo of J.G. Baird, from Regina Leaderpost Archives.
Honour Scroll Veterans: Lieutenant Colonel J.G. Baird was a teacher up until World War II. He joined the second battalion of the regiment in 1940 as a rifleman. He was commissioned the following year, and in 1942 was posted to the regiment's first battalion in England. Landing in Normandy on D-Day as an intelligence officer and in 1944 was promoted to major and commander of a company of rifles. Wounded at Emmerich, Germany, in the spring of 1945, he returned to Canada and was discharged in September. Recalled to active service in 1951, Maj. Baird was appointed to command a company of Regina Rifle Battalion of the 27th Canadian Infantry Brigade in the NATO European defence force. On completion of a year tour of duty in Europe, he served for two years with army headquarters in Ottawa, then returned to his civilian post as a welfare officer with the veterans affairs department in Regina. In 1958 he retired as an officer commanding the Regina Rifle Regiment, a militia unit of 20 Militia Groups. From 1965 to 1970 Lieutenant Colonel Baird was the aide-de-camp to the Lieutenant Governor.
Photo of W.G. Denney, from Regina Leader-post Archives.
Honour Scroll Veterans: Colonel W. G. Denney was the principal of Lakeview school until 1940 when he started serving in the armed forces. He spent 5 years serving overseas, starting in 1940 as a Lieutenant in the Ordinary Corps, and was posted to the second division. Soon he was promoted to Captain and Major. Denney served as D.A.D.O. mobilisation with the Canadian Corps until the Army Corps was formed in 1942. He went to Italy as a Lieutenant Colonel, and in 1943 he was sent back to England to take over the job of D.A.D.O. Second Canadian Corps Troop stationed at Folklore, England on D-Day. Below is an excerpt of his experiences on D-Day. In 1945 he came back to Regina. His first job was to write textbooks on ordinance procedures and a book on the history of the ordinance throughout the second world war. He was awarded the M.B.E. for his work writing the textbook, “Standar of Ordinance Procedure” which has been adopted by the entire Canadian Army as a basis for ordinance groups. He was also Awarded the Oak Leaf for gallant service in Northwest Europe.
Denney recalling his D-Day experience, from Leader-Post archives.
Photograph of W.C. Lorimer.
Honour Scroll Veterans: Wesley Crawford Lorimer was the Lakeview school vice-principal from 1935 to 1942. He served with the R.C.A.F. from 1942 to 1945 as a navigational instructor and later as an administrative officer. Dr. Lorimer was born in Regina and has a Bachelor of Arts and Education degree from the University of Saskatchewan. He earned his Masters of Arts and a doctorate in education from Columbia University, New York, in 1947 and 1948. He served the Saskatchewan Department of Education from 1945 to 1949, and later moved to Manitoba.