When In Rome…

Linda Hoy of Blenheim, Ont., shares a photo of her dad (right), Roland Demers, who visited Rome in early June 1944 with his buddy John Bitten.

The two men served with the Royal Canadian Engineers. “They wanted to see Rome so they hopped on a motorbike and went into the city which was about 20 miles from their base,” says Linda. “They were gone for the whole day, but didn’t get caught. It was the day the Americans entered Rome. Dad, who is now in his 90s, remembers getting a flat tire and having to patch it up along the way. He still lives at home and he still drives!”

We thank Linda for sharing this photo and encourage others with wartime or peacetime photos to do the same. Please mail them to Find-Share-Discuss c/o Legion Magazine, 86 Aird Place, Kanata, ON, K2L 0A1 (photos will not be returned) or by email (large file JPEG) to magazine@legion.ca. Please include your daytime phone number and mailing address along with a description of the photo, its date and the location and identity of the people (first names and last) and where they are in the photo. Have questions? Call us at 1-613-591-0116.