Having used the previous post to remind anyone in need of reminding–every major conflict produces stories like those of my family’s–millions of them, regrettably. I had been hoping to bring the stories of others close to me to light in this digital medium.

Having read the posts concerning my mother and father’s post-war story, good friends Jan and Yolie, the European-born (Belgium and Alsace) parents of my spousal unit’s brother’s wife, recalled a life parallel to my father’s.  Jan and Yolie are part of that great migration of the period, having emigrated from Belgium and Alsace to Canada, respectively.

And so, with thanks to Jan–hope you and Yolie are well in the winter of beautiful Montreal. You raised a wonderful daughter–like me, an “only”–and she with Guy have raised two lovely daughters, one of whom we saw twice this past weekend.

So, thinking of Jan and Yolie, here is their story as Jan has told it.

“ESTONIA AND ALSACE.”

What do the extraordinary experiences of two people during WW2 have in common?

In Eastern Europe we have Mr ALBERT VAART forced to leave his country ESTONIA because the coming annexation by the SOVIET UNION of the BALTIC NATIONS. These events brought him to take part in this conflict as fighter pilot in the LUFTWAFFE, and to see his wife and young boy become “displaced persons”.

In Western Europe, with the annexation by GERMANY of ALSACE (and Lorraine) we have our cousin LUC ELLING forced to join the WEHRMACHT, as young Alsatians are called to a WEHRPFLICHT, or obligatory service in the German Army.

A common experience happened in early 1945 on the German-Russian front, by then fought in Poland :

• for Albert Vaart, fighter pilot in the Luftwaffe, to be shot down, parachuted and landing on friendly soil, heavily injured and sent for many month in hospitals. It took 1951 to be re-united with his wife and son at a pier on the Hudson River in NEW YORK, thanks to a new USA law permitting refugees to come to the USA
•  for Luc Elling, radio-telegraphist & serving-gunner in a small tank (a crew of four), to survive the destruction of the tank, and to be miraculously     rescued by a passing motorcyclist. Sojourns in several hospitals. Operations of his two wounded arms, but the right arm could not be saved from an amputation. By April 1945, he was in a hospital in Prague, from where he could organize an escape and join his parents in STRASBOURG, already liberated by the Allies armies.

And there is a further noteworthy parallel : both took on further graduate studies and had successful careers

DULCE ET DECORUM EST PRO PATRIA VIVERE.