John Dumbeck is a participant in the Veterans Health Centre Day Program. At 102, this Second World War veteran and pilot who served from 1940 to 1946 clearly remembers those days during the War and has documented many of his experiences over the years.
Born in 1922 on a small homestead in Alberta, John grew up in Calgary as well as in the Peace Country. While attending a one-room school house, he also worked as a farm boy, helping in the fields before joining the war effort.
Living so remotely, airplanes were a rare and fascinating sight. As a child, John would watch the occasional plane fly overhead, knowing he’d one day be up there himself. At 18, he enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) with aspirations of becoming a pilot. After completing basic training and initial flight school, he was selected to fly.
His first flight in a ‘prehistoric’ Tiger Moth was unforgettable. He recalls holes in the floor that allowed him to see the ground below. “I could see through these holes and the distance between me and the grass below,” he joked, noting that this came in handy when misjudging an approach for landing.
John underwent extensive training, including advanced flight instruction on twin-engine aircraft, and mastering techniques such as barrel bombing in the mountains. His journey took him to Portage La Prairie, where he flew the Avro Anson, a sturdy aircraft used for training navigators and gunners. John said it “was as solid as a brick house!”
Throughout his service, John trained many airmen to head overseas and earned commendations for his safety record. Though he did not see combat, the memories of war weighed heavily on him, having lost close friends and witnessed tragic accidents. One friend walked into a spinning prop, another died after he dropped a bomb he was carrying, that had been inadvertently disarmed. A few airplanes caught fire and burned. These are all memories he will not forget. In 1946, John decided to leave the RCAF, but he still loved flying. He took a job at an American airbase in Grande Prairie, where he helped with crash responses. When the base closed, he built a cottage from old materials he bought from the airbase’s dismantled buildings. He lived in this for two years while he built the family home.
John met and married his wife in 1946. They had three children. He continued to fly, this time as a bush pilot flying deliveries up north. With his wartime pilot training, John would drop food deliveries with precision. He opened a flying school in Grand Prairie, and even opened a barbershop where he worked between flights up north. John’s life took him to Edmonton, then eventually in 1999 to Vancouver Island, to be closer to family and get to know his grandchildren.
Growing up in a musical family, he took up the clarinet and played it his whole life, sharing his love of music with his children and grandchildren. After moving to Victoria, he especially enjoys watching his grandson’s violin and piano recitals, proud to see his love for music continue in the next generation. John also enjoys writing poetry, capturing moments and memories in verse.
As we approach Remembrance Day, John shared a poem he wrote some years ago called …eleven…, which reminds us to remember those who sacrificed in the war.
A Poem by John Dumbeck: “…eleven…”
This day long ago gave cause to celebrate,
The end of a gruesome effort,
To fill the land’s mandate.
Yet celebrate means joy and happiness for more.
But where is it to be found,
In a vivid memory of a brutal war?
We must remember, in silence or parade,
The sacrifice of many,
In this, our life’s charade.
Old and worn or young and vital,
Do we really have a peace as title?
Did we earn it, or should we now pay,
For the gift of that … 11th day.
Like all Canadian veterans, John gave up so much so that we can enjoy the freedom we have today, and it is our privilege to support him at the Veterans Health Centre. You can help veterans like John enjoy the comforts of home and simple pleasures by making a donation today.