This 50-minute home
documentary shares personal photographs taken by Leading Stoker, Gilbert
Davis, as he narrates stories of his navy experiences; from joining the
Royal Canadian Navy in 1941 and defending Canada's west coast aboard the
H.M.C.S Bellechasse to his service on the H.M.C.S. Merrittonia escorting
Merchant Marine convoys across the Atlantic Ocean to provision needed
supplies to England and the European allies, through to the mass
surrendering of the German U-boat fleet on the Foyle River near
Londonderry in Northern Ireland at the end of the war.
Recorded while nearing his 90th birthday, Gilbert's recollections are of
daily war-time service life rather than distinguished battles, told in a
manner that only a dedicated serviceman could deliver; his emotion
resonant as he describes the saving of a single survivor from a
torpedoed supply ship.
Both educational and entertaining, this video offers a snapshot into an
era often faded from memories or lost through new generations of time.
One of only a few servicemen who traveled with a personal camera during
the war, Gilbert Davis shares his experiences through his own photos and
words.
|