Piddingworth Greg Benton |
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| 'Piddingworth...where St. George's Cross is not yet banned.' --Mark Steyn |
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| Honour all men. Love the Brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the King. (1Peter 2) |
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| Trust in the Lord and He will give you the strength & courage to do your Duty... Rose West Leonard |
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| E.M. LEONARD |
| Ernest Michael Leonard (1890-1958), the
son of William and Lydia (Powell) Leonard,
and my maternal grandfather, was from Plymouth, Devon, England, the great English seaport and Naval city. His father, a merchant, was also a Lay Preacher of the Methodist Church in the Peverell and Crownhill areas where they lived. Ernie grew up with his eleven brothers and sisters in the late Victorian, then "Edwardian" years. With his brothers he learned the trade as an ironfitter and worked at HM Dockyard Plymouth. He devoted himself to the game of football which he loved and for which he showed considerable talent. Professional football was relatively new in England and Ernie was good enough to play in a district First Division at the time for Torquay United nearby on the Devon coast. In fact, he played on the Torquay & District championship team of 1909. He would later play for the Devonian Football Club a team made up of Devonian ex-pats in the old Toronto District League, of which he was Captain, and that also won a championship. He would continue to play the game after the war. With many of his chums from the Devonians, Ernie heeded the call of King & Country and enlisted in the army in Canada and was sent with the 19th Battalion of the Second Canadian Expeditionary Force to fight with the Canadian Corps of the 1st British Army. Rising to the rank of Sergeant, he fought in France and Flanders from 1915 to 1918 and was at the Battle of the Somme and Vimy Ridge where he was twice-wounded by shrapnel and enemy fire. He returned home to Plymouth after the war where the family learned of the devastating horror he had experienced. Ernie met his lovely Rose when at the Military Hospital at Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, where Rosie West and some friends lived during the war. Their courtship developed during and after the war when in January 1920 they married and settled in Canada where they had four children: Raymond, Margaret, Olive and Mary Leonard. They have ten grandchildren. He worked at Sunnybrook Veteran's Hospital in Toronto,although there were some very difficult years during the depression. Always fit, he continued to play football into the 1930's. Ernie also took up the hobby of oil painting. Using postal card photographs from back home and images from holidays in Ontario's 'lake district', he produced several hundred paintings. A true son of Devon, he was particularly fond of the sea and of the great ships. He also enjoyed painting the tranquil scenes of lakes and trees; particularly the silver birch. During the depression, he would often give his paintings away with the only condition to pay for the frame. Ernie always used the finest sable brushes and Winsor-Newton paints and pigments. He shared his gift with others in his family, and particularly inspired me whom he taught the essentials of oil painting. Rose, my grandmother, was completely devoted to her husband and understood him; especially as he was haunted by the ghosts of war. Her enormous strength of spirit, virtue, and gentle dignity became the bedrock of their family. She was especially loved by all who knew her. Ever united, dear Rosie died in the summer of 1957 and Ernie, broken-hearted, died just a year later. Grandad was always a lot of fun in my memory. He would "juggle" oranges, invite me to go "hunting" rabbits, show me his scars, tell me his stories...and give me a nickel from time to time....just like Grandads do. It was always exciting to see him pull up to the house with Nana Rose in his Morris car with those little orange turn signals that flip out. He would watch the Friday night boxing matches on our little TV. As I have learned more in recent years about his life I realise how much of a true "hero" Ernest Leonard is to me...especially through his having borne the battle; the memories of which must have caused him much grief. If I could have spoken at his funeral I would have said that Ernie Leonard was "a superb athlete, a brave soldier, a very good painter, a loving father and husband, sensitive, proud, loyal, dutiful, and....my grandad! How I'd love to sip a pint with him today and hear his stories...and his opinion of the state of English Football! Greg Benton |
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