Thine O Lord is the Victory

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Thine, O Lord, is the Victory

Tony Goodwin


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THIE O LORD IS THE VICTORY

These are the words on the Roll of Honour attached to the western inside wall of the Avondale

Baptist Church.

On a visit to Northern England, I visited a Church and viewed their Roll of Honour of the men whodied in the Crimean war, the Boer War, WW1, and WW2. Beautiful brass plates lovingly tended andpolished to this day. At the other extreme, an Auckland Church has its Roll out in the store roomburied amongst the collected junk that seems to beset us. There are forty two names inscribed on thisroll from WW1, a single name from WW2; such is the fate of history.

Only a handful of those attending our churches would know the names that appear on these rolls.

Most of us if asked, would not be aware that we have such rolls. Sadly where churches havedisappeared I suspect the names of their heroes have disappeared with them. In one church it wasremoved due to not fitting in with the current dcor. The roll from our New Lynn church is now heldby Baptist Archives. It would be good to see every Roll having a photographic record held in our

archives. It is the intention of thisbooklet to bring some insight into

these names. They representthose who served our country in

the darkest days of war. At thetime they were remembered withgratitude and affection, now longgone.

At least forty million people diedone way or another due to WW2,half of them from the Soviet Un-ion. About six thousand NewZealand Servicemen and women

were killed and more than sixteenthousand wounded. Three ofthese deaths were servicemenfrom Avondale Baptist Church,

one each from the Army, Navy,and Air Force. Signalman

K Button was lost in the sinkingof HMS eptune, 19 December1941. Private Bryce Parsons was

killed as the result of an accident, Fiji, 30 June 1942, and Flight Lieutenant Ian Leahy as the result ofa flying accident in Ceylon, 13 February 1943. Fivewere prisoners of war and both Turley brotherswere wounded in action, Burt twice.

Altogether there are twenty-two names listed. At the time of writing, two continue to worship atAvondale, B Turley, and M Fearon. Of the others, Ces Jackman lives in the United States, andcontinues communications with Burt Turley. Also Vera Jackman was the only woman from thechurch to serve in the armed forces. She joined the Army in 1942, but her name does not appear onthis Roll. (It has been added following this article). Vera (Mrs. Webster) currently lives in Tauranga,

Ron Watts is in Hamilton, and Maurice Jackman in Auckland. Alex Blomfield lives in Brisbane. I donot know of others who are still living.

Some never returned to the Church at Avondale following hostilities, or indeed, returned to anychurch. War destroys so much in so many different ways, including spiritually, but these papers arean attempt to acknowledge the part played by these young people from our Church in the defence of

New Zealand during one of the darkest episodes in our countrys history. We should remember them.Here they are in the order that they appear on the roll.

Avondale Baptist Bible Class Boys, a number of whom served in the

military in WW2.

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[1] Baker, H K. Foundation scholar of the Sunday school. The names of these pupils appeared on

the shield in the Sunday school hall; now it is held by the Archives. The Bakers lived in EnismoreRoad, Mt Albert. Keiths sister Iris also attended the church. Contactmagazine of September 1942

lists him as Prisoner of War, L/Corporal H. K. Baker, Avondale. Unfortunately the only records I canfind (2nd NZEF Nominal Rolls and lists of Prisoners of War) have a remarkable coincidence that

another H K Baker meets all the criteria but does not appear to be the correct person. NZDF Person-nel Archives have not been able to confirm any other H K Baker so this remains a mystery in themeantime.

[2] Baker, M [Malcolm]. (Norelation to Keith). Marjorie, hissister, married Monty Mead andhad a long association with theChurch. Malcolm was a LifeBoy Leader in 1945. Heworked for some time atKingseat Hospital, SouthAuckland, and he died many

years ago. I know nothing ofhis war service but suspect itwould have been on the Home

Front as he had poor eyesight.Malcolm was the least militaryperson you could imagine.

[3] Z425220 Barker, B (eil) Fg.Off RZAF. Like a number of young men from the church,Neil was in the Bible Class and the Boys Brigade. On joining the RNZAF, he trained in Canadaunder the Empire Air Training Scheme prior to serving in 490 New Zealand Squadron Coastal

Command. This Squadron, originallyequipped with Wellingtons, Catalinasand finally Sunderlands was based inFreetown Sierra Leone. Neil was the

navigator in a Sunderland that ditchedat sea on 13 July 1944.

490 Squadron RZAF detachment atBathurst, Gambia 298 Wing Thursday

13th July 1944. Jui, Sierra Leone;Anti-submarine patrol, South of Cape

Verde, French West Africa, Sunder-land III ML825/P lost power on both

port engines. Depth Charges were setto safe and jettisoned prior to the air-craft hitting the water and breaking

up. The wireless operator F/S Opieand flight engineer, Sgt. Scott, both

died as a result of the crash. The eight survivors, five of whom were injured, were sighted in theirtwo dinghys the next day by a patrolling Sunderland and picked up by an American Air Sea rescuelaunch which landed them at Dakar on the 15th. (For your tomorrow : a record of ew Zealanderswho have died while serving with the RZAF and allied air services since 1915 , Errol Martyn, 1998-2008)

Without food or water they drifted for twenty hours when an aircraft was seen circling eight miles

away. The air was full of haze, if they used their only two signal flares and they were not seen their

eil Barker (second from left), Bathurst, SW Africa.

eil Barker (left), location unknown.

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last hope would be gone. Alternatively if they saved them for a better chance, it might never happen! We had a pow-wow there and then and everyone had their say. AsChairman I decided it better to wait for a better chance

said McGreal. It was pathetic to see the spirits drop as the

aircraft disappeared out of sight. Two hours later we knewwe were right, another aircraft appeared three miles awayand we lit our signal flares.

[ew Zealand ews, 10 October 1944]

This incident is covered in A oble Chance: one pilotslife by Maurice McGreal (1994), who was the senior piloton the ill fated plane. Neil suffered a head injury in the

crash, but endeavored to help a more seriously injury crewmember who eventually succumbed. This incident contin-

ued to affect Neil for many years after the war. He marrieda Canadian girl (Betty) and built his home in MethuenRoad, Avondale. They had two children, Donna and Billy.Neil worked for many years for TEAL (Tasman EmpireAirways Limited). He was a Life Boy Leader prior toentering the Air Force; Gordon Trigg, Murray Fearon andBurt Turley were close friends. He came back to the 60 th

anniversary celebrations of the Church. His second wifelives in Auckland.

[4] 66593 Becroft, C K [Colin] 2nd/Lieutenant 35 Bat-

talion. Born at Auckland 2 May 1916, Colin was educatedat Auckland Grammar and both Auckland and VictoriaUniversities. The Becrofts lived at Avondale Road. Colin

entered camp in August 1941 and embarked for Lautokaon Transport T35 January 1942. In July that year he was

returned to Auckland but in December was once more inthe Pacific as part of Mainyard, the New Zealand action

Fg. Off. McGreals diary while in the

dinghy - written on a ten shilling note!

Serious navigation error : EE should read

WW!!

Crew of Sunderland EJ165. eil Barker front left. W. O.

Opie top left & Sgt. Scott top right. Both died on impact.

Lieutenant Colin Becroft

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on Green Island. A Company 35 Battalion B Force Took part in the fighting at Vella Lavella and

Green Island. The report by Captain J H Jackson gives a dramatic description of the action againstthe Japanese forces in which a number of New Zealanders were killed and wounded.

Colin returned to New Zealand and in October 1944 was posted to the reserve list and saw no further

action. He went on to become Head of the Scripture Union in New Zealand, and moved to the UnitedStates, where he continued his work with SU and also led the work there. He returned to NewZealand having spent a life time of Christian Service. His daughter Jennifer Hendrickson has helpedwith information on her Father.

(Top) Z Troops 35 Battalion. (Below) Officers 35 Battalion.

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Men of 35 Battalion,

Vella Lavella.

Japanese transport vessel,

Green Island.

Z troops, Green Island.

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[5] A Blomfield (Alex). The following correspondence was received from Alex and is self explana-

tory. Thank you for your letter of 27th October and the effort you have put into your research. How-

ever, I wish to advise that from late 1937 I was no longer a member of the Avondale Baptist Church,or had any connection with it from that time. Under these conditions my service records are irrele-vant, thank you all the same. Alex Blomfield.

The Blomfield family was closely linked to the church. On Sunday evening 20 June 1926, the foun-dation members included the following Blomfields. Miss Rose Blomfield, Mrs. Hazel Mead, Mrs.Daisy Fearon, Mrs. Daisy P Blomfield, Mr. A T Blomfield (Treasurer) and Miss Ivy Blomfield. Per-haps the significant place of this name in the church history led to Alexs name appearing on this rollbut it will remain a mystery at present.

[6] 7592. Bright G A (George) Pvte. 5 th Field Ambulance POW o. 3200. Lived at 933 NewNorth Road and worked as a farmhand at Ohinewai prior to entering Burnham Camp 6 October 1939.He embarked with the 2nd echelon, which due to the dire situation following Dunkirk was diverted toEngland where they stayed until the threat of invasion had passed. The contingent thankfully leftEngland and was reunited with the New Zealand Division in Egypt, March 1941. George was

attached to the 5th

Field Ambulance (a surprising number of Baptist men served and were captured inthis unit). He was captured and became a Prisoner of War 13 December 1941. Transferred toTutarano POW Transit Camp, Italy, he was then held at Campo PG57 and was repatriated arriving in

Bluff on theLondonderry Castle, April 1942. It was the practice that Field Ambulance staff accom-panied repatriated wounded, and a condition of this action was to forbid them returning to active ser-vice; hence George saw out the rest of the war in New Zealand and was discharged from the army atWellington in May 1944.

[7] Brown, Royston, Major, 2nd Bihar Regiment, 25 Pioneer Battalion, Indian Army.

Royston was a New Zealand Baptist Missionary in India in the 1930s. Following the Japanese attackon Pearl Harbour in December 1941, India, as part of the British Empire found itself at war withJapan. The Allied Forces were quickly overrun from Hong Kong to the Coasts of New Guinea, and

Japanese Forces controlled the Northern and Western Pacific. Singapore, the supposed BritishPacific bastion was ignominiously captured, the most abject defeat in British military history.Japanese naval forces entered the Indian Ocean and did a clean sweep of any shipping they cameacross. The British Fleet sensibly kept out of the way,

except for the unfortunate carrierHermes and the cruiserCornwallwhich were quickly dispatched. This raiding force

then went on to carry out air attacks on Ceylon and bom-barded the port of Chitagong, destroying the oil installations.In fact India was at its mercy, but due to commitments in thePacific, the Japanese fortuitously withdrew. For all thedamage that was sustained, the whole exercise had provedrather pointless. Far more threatening to India was the land-ing of Japanese troops in Burma, who quickly overcame the

British Indian Forces, driving them back to the Frontier underconditions so awful that few were ever fit to fight again.

The outbreak of war on 1st September 1939 did not affectour missionary activities very much until the Japanese en-

tered the conflict. It is true that the Indian people greatlyresented the fact that the British Government declared waron Germany without consultation with the people of India(Large numbers of Indian troops were now fighting in theWestern Desert alongside the ew Zealand Division). The

Rev. Royston Brown

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fall of Singapore, and the invasion of Burma brought the war toour backdoor. There were blackouts in Calcutta, and defence

positions erected at Chandpur and elsewhere. Some of the

Indian troops captured at Singapore joined the IndianLiberation Army to fight the British under the Bengali, SubhasChandra Bose. As the war progressed, the area of conflict grew

closer and closer to our borders. What action should a healthyyoung missionary take in this situation? I discussed the matterwith Harry Jones and wrote to the Military Secretary in ew

Delhi.

I received a telegram asking me to report to the AreaCommander in Calcutta. He told me I had been granted anemergency commission in the Indian Army and I reported forduty a couple of days before Christmas 1941. The war inevitably

caused upheavals and retrenchments in our missionary work.

I was on active service for five years, and must cover these five years in about two lines! There wereover a million men in the Indian Army. In that tremendous army there were two battalions whichhad a majority of Christians on their strength. In the providence of God [and the common sense ofthe authorities] Harry Jones was posted to one and I to the other (25 Pioneer Battalion 2 nd Bihar

Regiment Line of Communication Troops). On one occasion I wrote from the Jungles of Burma tothe Bishop of Chota agpur how his men had behaved on active service. In reply he told me thatinstead of preaching on the Sunday night, he had read my letter to the congregation in the Cathedral

at Ranchi. (Personal correspondence, O. Dickson).

Bihar Regiment: Both famous, and to the British East India Company, infamous. The 1857 revolt

(generally referred to in English literature asThe Great Indian Mutiny or more appropri-

ately The Bengal Revolt) had its origins inthe introduction of greased cartridges andnew musketry procedures introduced by theBritish East India Company. This procedureincluded biting off the end of the cartridge,and loading the powder into the musket. TheIndian troops were of the belief that these

cartridges were greased with beef fat, andtherefore unclean. The incompetent handling

of this issue led to the mutiny of the Bihari

troops.

The Bihari was not only an excellent sol-dier, he was also quick to learn and applythe tactical drills with initiative. He was dis-ciplined when led by good officers [very few

of these in the British East India Company! -note] but capable of hostility when his cus-toms and beliefs were disregarded. Follow-

ing the revolt being savagely put down by British forces, Bihars were not allowed to

bear arms again until the end of World War

One, when they were accepted into the Hy-derabad Regiment which later became theMajor Royston Brown and son Elven

Major Royston Brown, Bihar Regiment

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Kumaon Regiment. 1st Bihar owes its origins to the Kumaonis the 2 nd was raised in 1942 as part ofthe Bihar Regiment (Bharat Rakshak website, www.bharat-rakshak.com)

The Burma Campaign. The longest Campaign of World War Two was fought in Burma. It was,arguably, the most ferocious, and most varied. It comprised jungle as well as desert warfare. The

longest retreat in the history of the British Army, followed by the greatest defeat suffered on land bythe Japanese. Long range penetration groups operated hundreds of miles behind enemy lines, ruth-less hand to hand fighting, armies transported by Dakota aircraft and bamboo rafts. The list is

almost endless, and it had its share of forceful personalities. The cantankerous Limey hating USGeneral Vinegar Joe Stilwell, the brilliant genius of Orde Wingate, the colourful JapaneseGenerals Mutaguchi and Miyazaki, the fiery Bengali Revolutionary, Subbas Chandra Bose, and thetwo pillars of British High Command, Field Marshal Slim and Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten.

The place and climate was as much an enemy as the man you were sent to kill. Malaria, ScrubTyphus, leeches, boots that rotted on the feet while you fought.

The campaign was a medical war as well as bayonets, guns, mortars, and transport. Decisions were

made based on the availability of men and supplies. It was a very cruel war; often better to be killedoutright than to be taken prisoner. There was no capacity on either side to feed, house, or transport

prisoners. Commanders despair drove men to suicide tactics, punishment for breach of military dis-cipline sometimes reverted to the savagery of the nineteenth century. ( Burma, the Longest War1941-45, Louis Allen, 1984)

The turning point came with the lifting of the siege of Kohima, and although there was a long periodof savage fighting ahead the Japanese had lost the initiative. The stone raised in memory of the deadat Kohima says, with brief poignancy.

When you go home

Tell them of us, and say,

For your tomorrow

We gave our today

I witnessed an incident, an Indian soldier giving water to Japanese wounded, which struck me as,well, unusual in the circumstances. All of a sudden there was a terrific whoomph. I realised it wasntwater but petrol. It really was a terrible war. (Royston Brown personal recollection)

It was the Rhododendrons of the hillside village of Kohima that left such a lasting impression onRoyston and following his retirement to their property in the Waitakere Ranges, The Brownsestablished a wonderful Rhododendron garden overlooking the city

Rev. Royston Brown is Home Again

After ten years away from ew Zealand, Rev. Royston Brown, one of our BC Representatives inIndia, arrived back at Auckland at the beginning of August. For the last five years he has been MajorBrown of the Indian Army, leading a battalion of Bihar hill men on the Burmese front. Since VJ dayhe has been working with the Government of Assam as special Officer for Planning and develop-ment.

Mr. Brown says in a letter. I saw far greater results from my missionary labours while in the army

than I have seen elsewhere during my term in India. During my first year in the Army I had about700 Indian Christians under my command, and for the remaining three years they numbered about400. early all the non Christian aborigines who joined us became Christians while they were withthe unit. o special evangelical campaign was necessary to obtain these results. They were thedirect result of living with Christian men of their own community

(Contact, Magazine of the Baptist Bible Class Movement)

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On his return to New Zealand, Royston took up the pastorate at Murrays Bay Baptist Church,

Auckland followed by Wellington Central. He left that church to go into prison chaplaincy, and thenserved as Superintendent of Boys Homes at Invercargill and Waikeria. On his retirement he attended

Avondale Baptist, Auckland where he remained a member until his death. His wife Annepredeceased him and he is survived by their three children.

[8] A/1778Button, K A (Ken), Signalman RZVR. Ken Buttonlived at 18 Henry Street, Avondale where his father, Arthur was a popular local postman and tomato grower. Ken, Connie, andMarjorie were foundation scholars of the Avondale Baptist SundaySchool which had opened in May 1926. Connie was a foundationteacher and the late Iris Fearon remembers her with affection, andhow she received a penny from Miss Button for being a good girl.A scroll with the names of all the foundation pupils and staff hung onthe wall for many years but has now gone.

Ken was born on 22 August 1918 at Auckland. He went to Avondale

Primary School and later attended Seddon Memorial TechnicalCollege, Wellesley Street, now a part of AUT. He was a sportsloving boy and played rugby for Suburbs. Following his schooling

he became an electrical worker with thefirm of Turnbull and Jones who were prominent contractors at the time. He

was proud of his little Austin 7 carwhich cost him the princely sum oftwenty pounds.

In February 1938 he joined the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (New Zea-

land Division) Official Number A1778

and in December that year qualified as Ordinary Signalman visual(referred to as a bunting tosser due to the fact they used sema-phore flags).

With the outbreak of hostilities against Germany, Ken, along withallgapona Reservists, was mobilised and prior to going overseashe served at the shore bases at Philomel and the examinationbattery at Narrow Neck

On the 2nd May 1940 in pouring rain, he sailed from Wellingtonalong with the RNVR detachment on the Troopship Aquitania.

They formed part of the convoy of the second Echelon, which in-cluded the first of the 28 Maori Battalion men to serve overseas.

Signalman Ken Button.

HM Transport SS Aquitania Took so many of our men over-

seas.

HMS Orion Plymouth?

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For the next twelve months he served as a signal-

man on Victory shore station and was then draftedto Chatham prior to joining one hundred and fifty

other New Zealanders aboard the Orion classcruiser HMSeptune.

The New Zealanders were ecstatic at joiningeptune as she was destined to join the NewZealand station, but on 31 May 1941 she sailedfrom the Clyde, not bound for New Zealand but for

the Mediterranean where Allied forces were beingpummelled by the Germans on land, sea, and air.

British Naval forces had catastrophic losses in theMediterranean, the BattleshipBarham being torpe-

doed and blowing up with no survivors; theremaining battleships disabled at Alexandria by

Italian frogmen.

Now it waseptunes turn. On 19 December 1941at 0106 hours while searching for an Italian con-voy off the coast of Tripoli, eptune and theaccompanying destroyer force blundered into anItalian minefield. eptune was badly damaged onthe bow but two further mines destroyed her stern.

The CruiserAurora and thedestroyers Penelope andKandahar were also hit by

mines, Kandahar being sobadly damaged she had to bescuttled. A fourth explosion

ripped open the side ofeptune and she lay on her

side and sank at 0400 hours.Those who survived the sink-ing quickly succumbed to theheavy sea that was runningand the intense cold. At sun-rise on Christmas Eve 1941AB John Walton was picked

out of the sea by an Italiandestroyer, the only survivorfrom eptune. One hundred and fifty New Zealand sailors had gone down with their ship, KenButton amongst them.

Like lots of young men going off to war, Ken was going with a girl who met someone else but he

bore no ill will, and like so many others he developed a close bond between shipmates and in corre-spondence referred to himself as one of The Three Musketeers.

I have maintained contact with Marjorie McIntosh, Kens sister, who attended our Sunday school. Inthe course of correspondence, I received a letter from the Rev. Les Arnold, who was also atAvondale Church. He advised that Ken was his cousin. Other naval contacts include Nixie Taverner,whose father, Rory OConnor, was captain of the eptune; and the late Jack Harker who wrote

Almost HMZS eptune, 1991.

RZVR contingent leaving Papakura

Signalman Ken Button of The Three Musketeers

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[9] Z425190 Fearon M C (Murray) Flt Lt RZAF,

was a Foundation Scholar of our Sunday school and livedat 83 Blockhouse Bay Road. Murray was educated at

Avondale Primary and Mt Albert Grammar School. Heapplied to join the Air Force October 1941 but from

3 March 1942 served as a gunner in 22

nd

Light AA regi-ment 94th battery (Bofors 40mm) at Narrow Neck andWhenuapai prior to being accepted into the RNZAF on30 May 1942.

He carried out his initial training at Rotorua and Levin.On 2 October 1942 he embarked for training at Portage laPrairie, Halifax, Canada, joining No 7 AOS RCAF underthe Empire Air Training Scheme, and was gazetted FlyingOfficer 5 September 1943.

On arrival in England he joined 75 operational squadron asa navigator on 22 October 1943. 75 (New Zealand) Squad-

ron was equipped with Stirlings types 1 and 3 and laterLancasters types 1 and 3. Murray did 34 missions (180operational hours) over Germany and France.

The ew Zealand Stirling Squadron was to play a promi-nent part in the bomber offensive during 1943 and further

increase the reputation it had gained in the earlier years.Flying under the apt motto, Ake Ake Kia Kaha For ever

and ever be strong o. 75 was now led by Wing Com-mander Lane, an Englishman with considerable experi-ence in bombing operations. His flight commanders were Squadron Leader Allcock, a ew Zea-lander who had joined the Royal Air Force before the outbreak of war and served in the Middle Eastbefore returning to win further distinction with a Stirling squadron, and Squadron Leader FowlerofChellaston, Derbyshire, who had previously completed his first tour of operations with o. 75Squadron. During 1943 just over 300 ew Zealanders, aircrew and ground staff, served with the

squadron. (ew Zealanders with the Royal Air Force Vol.II, W/Cmndr H L Thompson, 1956]

Following his tour of duty he became a radar instructor (H2S) from August 1944 until October 1945He was gazetted Flight Lieutenant 5 March 1945 and demobilised 3 March 1946.

He married Iris Hieatt and they were both members of the church at the time of writing. Murray iswell remembered for his magnificent tenor voice, his love of music, and his many years of dedication

as choirmaster. Along with his brother David, he ran FearonsButchery on the corner of

Rosebank and Great NorthRoads for many years. This is

now a money lenders, but thename Fearons Building is stillclearly visible along the faade.

Flgt Lieutenant Murray Fearon

Flgt Lieutenant Murray Fearon(seated, right)

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(Left) Flak over Le Havre, France

(Right) Hi Ho Silver!

Murray Fearon, centre

75 Squadron & Lancaster

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[10] 25601. Guptill, A C (Arthur), Pvte. 4th FieldRegiment. Born 10 February 1915. Arthur lived at 9Karaka Street Newton and worked at Mason & Porters as

a Duco (paint) Sprayer. Embarked for Egypt 27 August1940 and attached to 4th Field Regiment RHQ, Egypt.

While in Egypt he was fined 15 shillings and forfeitedthree days pay for being absent without leave! March1941 he embarked to join Lustre Force the ill-fatedattempt to help the Greeks. He was reported as Missingin Action 18 May 1941, but had been captured 20 Apriland held at Salonika until 25 June when he was trans-ferred through Yugoslavia to Stalag XVIIIA Ardning,Austria. Confirmed as POW No. 4280, he spent the nextfour years as a prison labourer until released by alliedforces in June 1945. Discharged from the Army26 October 1945, Arthur married Joyce Hancox, who wasa foundation pupil of the Sunday School. Ces Jackman

was their groomsman. Arthur had a carrying business inAuckland until his death on 12 August 1965.

Copy of extract from diary written Christmas Day

1942:

Most of us thought that Christmas Day 1941 mightpossibly be the last Christmas in captivity, but as the year1942 spent itself, it looked as though Christmas wouldonce again be spent in captivity. As far back as thebeginning of ovember we started our preparations. Last

year 15 of us gathered together, pooling our Red Crossparcels. This year Colin Crass and Paki Jones suggested that all the room 3 should be in the Christ-

mas feast, all agreed and were as one in the preparations. A committee consisting of P. Jones, C.Crass, J. Brown, and C. McCullough were left to make the final preparations.

It was also decided to hold a Christmas day service this year, the writer being asked to conduct a

short service. The preparation of a suitable message was no easy job in such a situation. Extra dayswere worked so that we would be off for four days at Christmas. The collection of food from the RedCross parcels consisted of currants, raisins, apricots, apples, chocolate, meats, vegetables, Yorkshire

puddings, and other luxuries. On the Thursday, Christmas Eve, preparations in earnest started. P. Jones and C. Crass concentrating on the table decorations and the food side. R. Rophia andJ. Taylor, with other helpers, in decorating the tree and room, all of which looked very well when finished. Christmas day turned out to be quite a good day. All were busy in the morning makingfinal arrangements.

By the time all was finished including the decorations, room 3 was perhaps the best set out. At 10.30

am the simple service was held. Lead Kindly Light was the opening hymn, the reading, Philippians2 verses 5-11, and the closing hymn being Silent ight. Quite a few expressed their thanks for the

Service. After the Service, dinner was prepared and served at 1 oclock. What a feed for a Prisonerof War! Bully meat loaf, cabbage, potatoes, tomatoes, baked beans were the first course, followed bya homemade plum pudding. Before the commencement of the meal, grace was offered by the writer.

All left the table full and the good things on the table were hardly touched. Such a spread would notbe seen in the homes of the Jerrys. The 21 met again for tea, but few with a big appetite! In theevening a concert was held, followed by supper.

Thoughts Thanks again to the Red Cross for supplying parcels for another Christmas treat. As wethought and hoped last year that this will be the last year in captivity, this time the prospects lookbrighter. 1943 What? (Letter supplied by Mrs. Joyce Guptill)

Arthur Guptill & Ces Jackman

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[11] 26181 Jackman, C F (Ces), S/Sgnt.Mid.2nd Mobile Dental Unit. Sailed with the 3rd Echelon27 August 1940. Was with the 2nd Mobile Dental

Unit and left for Greece from Alexandria on 30 June1940. The unit experienced numerous difficulties

with Command and the bulk of the Unit wascaptured with all their equipment. Ces was captured18 May 1941. In discussion with Burt Turley he feltthat they were led directly into German hands by aMilitary Policeman directing traffic. In afterthoughthe is now convinced the Military Policeman wasin fact German. Like so many other New Zealanderscaptured, he was first shipped to Salonikia, and thenonto Stalag XVIIIA where he spent most of his timeas a prisoner until May 1944.

While the loss of the Dental Units in Greece

affected the service in the Western Desert, it proveda blessing for those held prisoner as so many ew

Zealand Soldiers had false teeth, and in some in- stances, the hard Biscuit issued to the troopsmade it very difficult for these soldiers who had

damaged or broken dental plates to obtain any sustenance whatsoever (The ew Zealand Dental

Services, Thomas Vernon Anson, Dept. of Internal Affairs, 1960)

For his work in the camps Cecil was Mentioned in Dispatches (London Gazette CR 655 4 March1946). The New Zealanders had the unenviable reputation of some of the worst teeth of any of thecombatants in the war. His brother Maurice and sister Vera all served in the Armed Forces. Ces wasa Life Boy Leader. He eventually settled in the United States where he married, and continued to

maintain correspondence with Burt Turley.

[12] A/1850. Jackman, M. (Maurice) AB RZVR. The Jackmans lived at 41 Methuen Road,Avondale. Maurice served in the RNZNVR prior to hostilities and on 2 May 1940 in pouring rain he

sailed from Wellington with the RNZNVR detachment on the Aquitania, which formed one of thetransports of the Second Echelon (as did Ken Button and Arthur Guptil). Maurice served onHMS

Douglas, a destroyer attached to the Home Fleet followed by transfer to Motor Launch 1028, origi-nally based on the Isle of Bute,Scotland. This boat and crew even-tually served in the Mediterraneantheatre. Maurice was fortunate thathe missed out on being drafted to

HMS eptune. He would have

been devastated at the time onmissing out on the draft that wouldhave returned him home to NewZealand. (See Almost HMZS

eptuneby Jack Harker). He didnot return to the church followingthe war, and I have no informationto date on his service record. At

the time of writing he lives atAuckland.

Sergeant Ces Jackman

Ces, Vera & Maurice Jackman

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[13] 809603 Jackman, V (Vera) Sgt WAAC. Vera joinedthe WAACs 12 October 1942 and after initial training

served at Western Springs on predictors for the 3.7 AA Bat-tery stationed there. When the threat of air raids had abated,she was transferred to 9th Coastal Artillery battery at

Motutapu Island (the remains of these installations are visible to this day). She then served on the examination 9thBattery at Narrow Neck on a searchlight unit, and following

hostilities she went to Japan with J Force. At the time of writing Vera lives in Tauranga and kept intouch with Tresna Miller (Horries wife). Vera was engaged to Ian Leahy who was killed in Ceylonas the result of a flying accident. During the war years Vera loyally wrote regularly to all those fromthe church who were serving overseas and is remembered with affection by all who knew her.

[14] 450907 Knaggs, I W (Ian). Pvte. 21 Battalion. Born at Auckland 22 November 1922. The

family lived at 1904 Great North Road, Avondale (now is a second hand car yard adjacent to theshopping centre). Ian attended Mt. Albert Grammar School and Auckland University where hestudied for a BSc in botany and chemistry. While still a student, he entered the military camp atBombay, South Auckland on 3 December 1941 and was originally allocated to 2nd Artillery Battery,

but as he was an accomplished cornet player, he was quickly transferred to the band. This wasfollowed in the early months of 1944 by a period of Manpower service, harvesting at Te Aroha and

Waimate. This was a period when men were sent to assist essential industries, especially food production etc. In March 1944 he again entered camp at Papakura, then on 29 June 1944 heembarked on HMT84 with the 12th Reinforcements, arriving in Egypt in August. Here, following aperiod of infantry training, he embarked from Port Said for Italy in October. He served initially in the5

thField Ambulance and finished the war at the 3

rdGeneral Hospital, Italy, as a stretcher bearer. This

would indicate that he continued to be attached to a band as bandsmen traditionally were recognizedas stretcher bearers prior to returning to New Zealand. He was discharged from the army on 7 April

1946; a long and eventful period of service. On his return he married Emerald and they had two boys.Ian is remembered as a bugle instructor at Boys Brigade, thus sharing his musical ability.

He took up his studies again at Auckland University following his discharge from the army andobtained his MSc in science and chemistry and while studying for his doctorate he also wasemployed as a part time lecturer. He never completed his doctorate but worked for Hellabys freezingworks as an industrial chemist. He then had a successful glasshouse business growing tomatoes. Thiswas followed by a smaller enterprise growing flowers from whence he retired with Emerald to

Orewa.

(Above) Ces Jackman in Greece

(Above) Vera Jackman far right. J Force Japan.

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(Above) O/S Maurice Jackman

(Below) HMS Douglas, Home Fleet

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H M Motor Launch 1028. Mediterranean?

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[15] Z404031Leahy I S (Ian) Flt Lt RZAF. Born

Mt Eden 17 November 1917. Lived at 8 Hillside Cres-cent, Mt Eden. Ian was a professional photographer. At

the age of seventeen he applied to become an air cadet,and I have his beautifully written application letter from

November 1934. He applied to join the RNZAFNovember 1939 and was enlisted eleven months later inOctober 1940 when he joined the initial training wing atLevin. He embarked for Canada in December of thatyear on the Aorangi to continue his training at London,Ontario, under the Empire Air Training Scheme. On1 June 1941 with the acting rank of Flight Lieutenant heproceeded to No1 M Deport, Debert, for embarkationto the UK.

He arrived at Bournemouth on 16 July. He continuedtraining until joining No 22 Operational Squadron. On

7 January 1942 the Squadron proceeded to West Kirby,Cheshire for embarkation to India.

Ian was killed with all members of the crew in a flyingaccident on Saturday 13 February 1943. The BeaufortW6543 was a Mark 1 version fitted with the notoriousBristol Taurus VI engines, but the inquiry did not lay the

blame there. Ian is buried at Colombo (Kanatte) General Cemetery, Sri Lanka, in plot 6C Row Cgrave 22. I have the full report of the inquiry into this accident and have extensive information aboutIans war record. Ian was engaged to Vera Jackman at the time of his death.

Much was expected of the British-made

Bristol Beaufort, the first example of whichwent to 22 Squadron at Thornley Island near

Portsmouth in 1939. The Beaufort proved,however, to be a demanding aircraft to fly, andits Taurus engines were notoriously unreliable,

seldom delivering their promised power. Manyof the new aircraft were soon wrecked inaccidents, many of them the result of engine

failures. The bomber was based on the earlier

Blenheim design. The Beaufort was heavier,and carried a crew of four. It was the standard

torpedo bomber from 1940 to 43 and wasnever considered a successful design. The

Beaufort was also produced in Australia wherethey were fitted with the more powerful andreliable Pratt & Whitney twin wasp engines.

The Australians had some notable successesusing these aircraft in action against the Japa-

nese.(Business in Great Waters, The U Boat wars1916-45, J A Terraine, 1989)

Flght Lietutenant Ian Leahy

Flght Lieutenant Ian Leahy

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(Left) Crew of Beaufort W6543. Flight Lieutenant Ian

Leahy far right. All killed.

Bristol Beaufort. Possibly RAAF with Pratt & Whitney engines. More

reliable than the Tanus engines on W6543. (Photo: RZAF Museum)

Flght Lieutenant Ian Leahy, right

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[16] Mcaughton (Tony) He was in the Air force, but I have no record of his military service.

Tony had a PhD. in education and went on to become Principal of Ardmore Teachers TrainingCollege.

[17] Miller E A. (Ted) was Horries brother. An unfortunate coincidence: the file on Edward Arthur

Miller, cabinetmaker does not seem to be the same person from the Church Roll and his serviceremains unverified to date. Ted apparently served in the Pa-cific and his first wife, Billie, died of pneumonia while hewas overseas. He was manpowered back to New Zealandand spent the war years in the construction of locally builtHarbour Defence motor launches and Fairmiles. He mar-ried his second wife Pearl in 1945 and opened his own furni-ture factory High grade Furniture at Mt Albert. His brotherHorrie also worked here as a French polisher. Unfortunatelyfire destroyed the factory and Ted never appears to have re-covered from the loss. He died on 2 February 1999.

[18] 36139 Miller H. (Horrie) Pte. 5th Field AmbulanceHorrie was born at Whangaruru, North Auckland on

9 February 1912. Following school he worked as a packer forthe Precision Engi-neering Company.He lived at 22 Car-rington Street, Wel-lington. He was cap-tured in the MiddleEast December1941 (see K Baker

and G Bright alsocaptured December

1941) and was repatriated to New Zealand August 1943. Asa repatriated serviceman he was no longer able to serve over-

seas on active service and was assigned to the No 1 HospitalShip Maunganui and served on her until discharged in Sep-

tember 1946. Following his discharge he worked for his brothers companyHigrade Furniture Ltdin Mt Albert as a French polisher. Horrie polishedand stained numerousitems in the church which

bore hallmarks of hisskills.

Horrie was married toTresna whose first

husband, Bryce Parsons, had been killed on active service Horrieremained a member of the church at Avondale until his death inMarch 1992

Horrie Miller (right) and friend.

Horrie Miller and friend.

RZHS Maungonui

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[19] 70876 Parsons R B. (Bryce) Pte. 36th Battalion.

Born at Auckland 29 February 1920, he lived with his familyat 30 Weston Avenue Mt Albert. Following schooling he

worked for Ross & Glendinning Ltd as a warehouseman prior to enlisting. Bryce signed on January 1941 and after

training at Trentham he was posted to 36 Battalion B ForceFiji, January 1942. He served with 8th Brigade H/Q Companyrecon. Platoon. While on duty patrol between Navua and Se-rua on the evening of 30th June 1942. Pte. Parsons drivingBeaverette No 45 (armoured car) and was crushed due to the

vehicle overturning because of road subsidence.He died at the scene at 2355 hours. The Courtof Inquiry, which included Lieutenant JackMarshal, (future Prime Minister) attached noblame to any of the crew Bryce is buried at theSuva Military Cemetery grave 13.187. Bryce

and Tresna were married 26 October 1940 and Raewyn (now Raewyn Garwood) was only threemonths old. Bryce never saw his daughter. The 7th Auckland Boys Brigade Company rememberedBryce by the introduction of The Parsons Memorial Shield acknowledging those obtaining the

Kings badge.

In Memory of

Private Raymond Bryce Parsons

70876, who died age 22

On Tuesday 30 June 1942

Private Parsons, Son of Reginald Fredrick and Hazel

Florence Parsons

Husband of Tresna Lyle Parsons, of Mt Albert, Auckland,

ew Zealand.

Remembered with Honour

Suva Military Cemetery

Bryce Parsons under training.

Beaverettearmoured car similar to that driven by

Bryce Parsons when he died.

[20] 24343 Turley B C (Burt) Lt. 23rd Battalion. Burtentered Papakura Camp 15 May 1940. In November the sameyear he was posted as a sergeant to a training Battalion thatshipped to Fiji as a precaution against Japan entering the war.In May 1941 Burt returned to New Zealand, and in July hesailed on theAquatania as part of the third echelon and joined

the remnants of the New Zealand forces that survived Greeceand Crete at Maadi Camp.

There preparations and training were undertaken for futurecampaigns in the Western Desert. In November 1941 the Brit-

ish 8th Army (including the New Zealand Division) launchedthe Crusader offensive aimed at restoring British positions

Sgt. Burt Turley

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lost in the earlier campaigns.

Burt was posted to 18 Battalion. In January 1942 the NewZealand Division moved to the Lebanon where it stayed

until the German breakthrough in June that drove the 8thArmy back to the Egyptian border. The New Zealanders

were sent immediately into action at Mersa Matruth. AtRuweisat Ridge the New Zealanders were overwhelmedby enemy armour and Burt was wounded in the left armduring the general retreat. This was a disastrous time forthe New Zealand Division with large numbers killed andothers being taken as prisoners of war. Blame for thisdebacle rested in part to the timidity of Lumsdens 1 stArmoured Division who refused to join the fight. Themorale of the NZ Division was badly affected by these

and other reverses in the desert war.

Following his convalescence, he was assigned to 24 Battalion as a troop sergeant with the anti tank

gun platoon, in September 1942. The New Zealand Division was now in reserve and preparing forMontgomerys offensive at El Alamein.

The battle of El Alamein commenced with a tremendous artillery barrage 9 pm 23 October 1942.Soon after the breakthrough Burt contracted hepatitis, and did not rejoin the Battalion until afterChristmas when they were just south of Benghazi. Twelve months after being rushed back from theLebanon and fighting from El Alamein to Tunisia, North Africa was finally in Allied hands, and theNew Zealand Division prepared for its move to Italy.

Shortly after arriving back in Cairo, Burt was selected for officer training, and after spending tendays leave in Palestine with his brother Os, he commenced training at Acre, Palestine. He sailedfrom Alexandria to join the 21st Battalion, which had been in Italy since October 1943. Burt took

over a platoon at the Sangro river crossing, and was with the Division when it was transferred to theAmerican 5th army at the Rapido River, Casino. During the fight for the town of Casino Burt waswounded for the second time with a bullet in the right shoulder, which also ploughed through theflesh of his back before exiting.

Following his admission to the hospital at Caserta, he convalesced in Sorrento, in the Bay of Naples

and later rejoined the Battalion and spent some time as Liaison Officer with the Polish Brigadefollowed by his appointment as 21st Battalion liaison officer with 5th Brigade Headquarters. Burtcontinued with the Battalion into Northern Italy, and prior to the end of the Italian campaign he wasto return to New Zealand for three months leave. This was in February 1945 and the war in Europefinished while he was in New Zealand

Extract from 21 Battalion War HistoryAt the Rapido River prior to the Monte Casino battles February 1944. Half an hour after midnightBattalion Headquarters was electrified by a phone call from Major Abbott. Enemy surrounded hiscompany headquarters. The house was a typical farm dwelling built of stone. Company headquar-

ters occupied one room and the Italian family the other. Outside, there was a sentry at each end ofthe building, while inside Abbott, and 2ndLieutenant Turley were studying various routes to the river.

Which Turley had just returned from examining.

Sergeant Babe and his two-man patrol reported that they had tied in with the left flanking troops,and then left to get some sleep. Babe returned to see about something, when a couple of shots wereheard and he went outside to investigate. He walked right on top of a German who dropped a

grenade and then darted around a corner. Babe kicked the grenade away and suffered shock andonly minor splinters when it exploded.

Burt Turley, Officer Training Course, Italy

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Major Abbott identified himself over the phone by using his Christian name, Brian, and one of theGermans called out Brian come and surrender He declined the invitation!

Between phone calls to the forward platoon to come andchase the Germans away, Abbott exchanged firethrough the door and shuttered windows It was a case

of stalemate, the German patrol was outside and couldnot enter nor could the Headquarters emerge out into

the moonlight. The Germans resolved the impasse byleaving before relief arrived. The serious aspect of the

encounter now alerted the Germans to the presence ofthe ew Zealanders at the river as the two men of

Babes patrol and one of the sentries was missing. Theother sentry was found hiding with the Italian family!

[21] 66250Turley O E (Os) S/Sgt 6th

Field Regiment.Born 12 February 1913. Customs Clerk. Address, 48 StGeorges Road Avondale. Os enlisted 12 December1940, entered camp at Waiouru and trained as a gunner.He was attached to the 38

thBattery 12

thField Regiment

(25 pounders) and on 12 September sailed on H.M.T 31for the Middle East. He arrived in Egypt 19 October andafter desert training was in action in the Middle East. Hewas wounded in the right arm in action on 4 August1942 while serving in the 6th Field Regiment. Hereturned from hospital and continued to serve in theMiddle East and then saw action in Italy from October1943 until the

close of hostilities in Europe. On his return to New Zealand

in September 1945 he married Olive Hutchings at theAvondale Church on 27 October that year,. He wasdischarged from the Army on 22 April 1946 and died on 6

April 1972 after distinguished service to the church and theBaptist denomination

Os & Burt Turley. Egypt?

[22] 63232 Trigg G M

(Gordon) Pvte. 2nd

Mobile

Dental Unit. Gordon was

born on 21 July 1914 andlived at 1704 Great NorthRoad Avondale. Prior to

entering the army he was aprinter with NZ NewspapersLtd. He entered Papakuracamp on 12 June 1940 andwas at Ngarauwhaia andTrentham before returning toPapakura prior to embarka-tion on HMT J26 as part ofthe 2nd NZEF 5th Reinforcements He was attached to 2nd compositeDental Hospital, Egypt. He forfeited four days pay for neglect ofduty 29 October 1941, but he soon made this up by being appointedas cook with an extra daily allowance of 2/6. He served in the West-

ern Desert and Italy as a cook with the 2nd Mobile Dental Section.

Private Gordon Trigg

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He returned to New Zealand on 20 February 1945 and was discharged on the 30th of the following

month still with the rank of Private! He married Olive Rackham on 19May that year . Gordon wasthe Boys Brigade Captain when I joined the Company in 1949. Olive was Norm Rackhams sister,

and Captain of the Girls Brigade. She died a number of years before Gordon who married again. Hedied on 4 June 1986.

Marriage party, Pvte Gordon Trigg. On his left eil Barker,

far right Burt Turley.

[23] Z404974 Watts R G (Ron) S/Ldr mid[2] RZAF. Ron was born at Auckland 11 March

1916, his home address 18 Woodward Road Mt Albert. His parents were long time members atAvondale, and his father served as treasurer for a number of years. Ron went farming in the Waikato

following high school and entered the Air Force at Levin December 1940. In March 1941 heembarked for Canada where he trained under the Empire flight training scheme before being trans-ferred to the United Kingdom. Prior to joining No.488 (RNZAF) night fighter squadron he had flownHurricanes, Spitfires, Blenheims, and Beaufighters. By the time Ron joined the Squadron in 1943, itwas equipped with Mosquito fighters. He was based in the south of England and then on thecontinent until the end of hostilities. Ron was promoted to Wing Commander 1944 and eighteenmonths after joining the Squadron, he commanded it. He was gazetted Squadron Leader (Temp)22 January 1945 He returned to farming following hostilities and lived at Hamilton in later life.

In September 1943 the Squadron secured its first victories when two enemy aircraft were destroyedon the same night. They were shot down by Flight Lieutenant Gunn and Flight Lieutenant R.G.Watts of Auckland. Unfortunately, Gunn, who had worked hard with the Squadron since its forma-tion and who proved himself a most efficient pilot, also lost his life that night, for as he sent a

Heinkel III down in flames, its rear gunner, with a final burst hit him six times with machine gunbullets. Meanwhile, Watts had sighted a Dornier 217. We were patrolling off the South Eastcoast, he said when we sighted the Dornier and closed to within 500 feet. I gave a three second

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burst, which struck the enemy aircraft on the starboard engine and the fuselage, causing debris to flyoff. The engine caught fire, and he went down towards the sea. He continued to burn on the water

for several minutes before sinking (ew Zealanders in the Air War, A W Mitchell, 1945)

Others from our Church

Over the years others have joined our congregation who served in the war. Bert Whitten, our firstpost war minister, was a prisoner of war in Germany and his widow, Jean, has kindly let me copy hismemoirs. I trust one day she will release them to a wider public. Chum and Murray Mcaughton:Chum served in the WAAFs, and confided they were the best days of her life! Andy Grant was a D

Day veteran, landed in Normandy with the Glasgow Highlanders, HLI. Bert Slattery, Black Watch,served in Burma in the 14th Forgotten Army; Jack Scott served in the Parachute Regiment on

Special Operations leading guerrilla forces in Greece. Eb Black, Harold Pinel, and Darryl Lowe allserved with the RNZAF in the Pacific on aircraft maintenance at Green Island, Guadalcanal and

Bougainville where Ventura Medium Bombers and Kittyhawks of New Zealand Squadrons were inaction. Captain Ted Parsons was with the Royal Marines.

Acknowledgments

I felt compelled to complete this summary of the war record of the above while there was still time.Many people helped with information. To begin with there was a diffidence at asking questions andjust being nosey (some felt that way also) but this record is of historical importance to the church.As confidence grew with encouragement, so the information flowed. Ken Button was first as he

served in the Navy and I had an empathy with that. Where to start? I wrote to all the Buttons listedin the Auckland telephone directory. (There were not that many) and received a reply one way or

another from every one of them! That was a wonderful encouragement. A lady wrote a lovely letterabout her late husband who was also K Button, but was an Army Chaplain. Others had passed myletter on, one of the recipients was Les Arnold, an ex Member of our Church and retired BaptistMinister, indicating that Ken Button was his cousin. Then a phone call from Marjorie McIntosh,Orewa: You are looking for relatives of Ken Button, I am his sister. What a wonderful experiencethat turned out to be and we have been in contact ever since. There was a request in theRSA Reviewfor information regarding those who served on HMS eptune. It was Nixie Taverner, whose Father

Rory OConnor was the Captain. This was followed by a visit to Jack Harker, author and naval histo-rian, who wrote the bookAlmost HMZS eptune. Unfortunately Jack has recently passed away. Thestaff at NZDF Personnel Archives, the Air Force, Army, and Navy Museums, Auckland War Memo-rial Library all have been helpful in accommodating many requests. Originally NZDF Archivesgraciously released files without charge, but alas that couldnt last. My wife Jan patiently proof read

what must have been to her a rather tedious process. Lisa Truttman of the Avondale-WaterviewHistorical Society has provide encouragement and practical help in preparing this information in areadable format and assistance with publication.

No one approached has refused cooperation, even when it brings back sad and sometimes bitter

memories. But even with the best of intentions, regretfully it is not possible to complete the task. Forsome, where to look? Without a service number it is difficult to obtain military records but the hopeis that someone reading these notes will be able to expand, edit, modify, or give a lead into furtherresearch. In all events, the final records of these military personnel does not rest with man but withhis maker.

Tony Goodwin4th July 2003

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Documents

Thine O Lord is the Victory