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20210100 Blue and Gold January 2021 Blue and Gold President’s Report Contents Another year has passed, and after four years it was time for me President’s Report 1 to step down as the President of our Association at our AGM in May 2020. It has been a pleasure and honour to serve as your Stan Butterworth 2 President and I thank you for the opportunity. I want to take this opportunity to recap some of our activities in Remembrance Day 2019 and 2020. Your Association has again hosted, the 2020 5 Welcome Back BBQ and the Cambrai Dinner in 2019. While the weather for the BBQ was not the best, we are confident Change of Command 7 everyone went home well-fed. I am quite confident there was sufficient food for all ranks as this year we actually had leftovers, Co’s Coins 9 but rest assured they did not go to waste. It was unfortunate the Engineers were unable to join us in 2019. They were missed. Blast from the Past 10 The 2019 Cambrai Dinner was held once again at Canad Inn Fort Garry. As usual the hotel did a great job with the dinner and RMI Award 11 the staff on most accounts did a superb job. Our thanks to the Guidon Party for another fine job done! We have had the same Historical Article 13 music man for a number of years now, but for whatever reasons some years there are large number of members taking advantage of the music and in other years very few. To that Trooper Stan point, if members have ideas or suggestions to change up this Butterworth Fund. 17 event, please let us know. Lieutenant- Governor Also in 2019 members of the Association attended the Soldiers’ Award. 17 Appreciation Dinner, and we were pleased to have the 2020 Executive Elected 18 1 January 2021 opportunity to serve the Jr. Ranks that Your Association has had its challenges over evening. While we may not have been visible, the years in having Regimental Family we were happily filling the plates with your members step forward and actively participate Christmas Dinner and we had fun doing so. We in the operation of our Association. I extend an also presented a turkey to the member that open invitation to all to consider stepping had the best shot and a Cornish game hen to forward and getting involved. the member that did not have the best shot. From the looks of things that evening all It has been another enjoyable year, serving the members of the Jr. Ranks enjoyed themselves. members of the Regiment and I thank you for that opportunity. While your Association has been providing sponsorship to the children’s Christmas Party, FACTA NON VERBA it was decided that rather than host a children’s Submitted by Bob Dolyniuk party in 2019 the Unit was to host a Family Day to be held later in 2020. Your Association was In Memory of Stan Butterworth happy to commit financial sponsorship for this event in lieu of the children’s Christmas party. On Feb 20, 2020 at 0700 hr. Stan Butterworth However, as a result of COVID19 the Family passed away and went to report for duty to his Day did not occur. new boss in the great beyond. In 2019, your Association had also made a H9538 Arthur Stanley Butterworth, in all the financial commitment to 1226 Fort Garry Horse years I’ve known him I never knew his first Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps to sponsor, name was Arthur, he was just Stan. He began in part, their trip to Central Canada. As the trip his military service as a Cadet in the Cameron was cancelled the equivalent funds were Highlanders Cadet Corps. invested into the 1226 Fort Garry Horse Royal Canadian Cadet Corps Endowment fund, In 1942 joined the Reserve Army, serving as a which is held by the Foundation. gunner in 19 Field Battery, RCA, located at McGregor Armoury, not far from his home on At a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Atlantic Avenue. Association late last year a motion was passed to provide further support to our Regimental When he came of age for overseas service in Family. This new initiative is in the early 1943, he and his brother Fred joined the planning stage when the initiative rolls out all Canadian Armoured Corps and trained in in the family will be provided with the details. Winnipeg and Borden before being posted to England as reinforcements in March of 1944. Unfortunately, in 2020, as a result of COVID- 19 the Association and its activities had ground In October 1944, they were sent to Holland and to a halt. We were fortunate to be able to host became members of the FGH, both as the Welcome Back BBQ on September 13, gunners, and were posted to the Regiment 2020. Unfortunately, the Normandy Dinner, Jr. which was then in action near Woensdrecht, Ranks Appreciation Dinner, Cambrai Dinner, Netherlands. and Children’s Christmas Party were not held. 2 January 2021 He served in A Squadron through the rest of Submitted by LCol Dave Koltun (Ret’d) the Netherlands campaign and the advance into Germany. Fred, his brother, was a Two Brothers in the Garrys member of B Squadron, and was killed during the liberation of Groningen in April 1945. Trooper Fred Butterworth of B Squadron of the FGH died April 13, 1945. He was the gunner in As a late reinforcement, after the fighting was his tank that was hit by a German panzerfaust over, Stan was employed delivering trucks on rocket. His squadron was supporting infantry in road trips as far as Czechoslovakia. He the operation to liberate the city of Groningen, returned to Canada in 1946. in the northeast of the Netherlands. Panzerfaust translates from German as Stan was predeceased by his beloved wife armoured fist. It was an inexpensive, single Hazel, parents and his brother Fred. He is shot, recoilless, man-portable anti-tank survived by two sons Fred (Jennifer) and Gary weapon. A memorial plaque on the building in (Tannis) and two daughters-in-law Jennifer Groningen marks the site today where the tank and Tannis, six grandchildren and two great- was found after it burned. grandchildren. Fred‘s brother, Trooper Stan Butterworth, was Stan was employed at Dustbane as the in the Garrys there at the time and later wrote Administrative/Accounting Manager, then by the following letter to his parents about his RL Crane as a Sales Rep selling computer brother’s death. The letter is transcribed from forms, prior to retirement. a video interview in 2011 with Stan reading the letter. Stan was always a staunch supporter of the Regiment, and Regimental Family. He seemed Stan survived the war and passed away in to always be helping out with the museum, Winnipeg in February 2020. We miss him. Association, the kit shop, and soldiers of the Unit. He would always take time to talk to a Dear Mother, Father, Ruth and Doreen; member or listen to them if they approached him and he always had a smile. On By the time you have received this letter, you discussions with Stan, he could always come will have been notified of the terrible news. My up with a calming way of looking at things that thoughts are with you in all this great sorrow. I would soothe your temper and give you a don’t think there is much that I can say to help. unique perspective to the problem you Fred was the best brother and friend that a discussed. I know that he will be greatly missed man could have. If I could choose myself, I by all who knew him. could never find anyone near as good. The family will be having a private interment of I believe that you would like to know something Stan’s remains. At a date and location yet to of how it happened. It was just on the outskirts be determined a celebration of Stan’s life will of Groningen, during very stiff street fighting. be held. Once the family lets us know the His tank was hit twice with bazookas where and when of Stan’s celebration of life, (panzerfaust). It may be a consolation that he the Unit will push that information out. We have could not have suffered at all. lost a giant within the regimental family. 3 January 2021 I visited his grave today. It was covered with flowers put there by people of the district. I could not manage to be at the funeral, but he had many friends there. A service will be held for him tomorrow which I will attend. Also, I have borrowed a camera and I will send some photos of the grave as I feel sure you would like to have them. There is one tribute I would like to pass on to you. A Dutch man, who shook my hand, said he died to free our city. He did, but he died for more than that. He fought for all us so that we could have peace. He fought and died so that there would be no more Canadian graves in Europe, so the war to end wars becomes a reality. It is up to us over here to finish this fight and then up to all of us both here and back there to see that what he died for becomes a reality. I wish I could close with something to relieve your sorrow, but words fail me.
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