On March 28th, Mount Royal College played host to a World War 2 display organized by fellow club member Stéphane Guevremont. Not only does Stéphane build models but he also teaches history at Mount Royal and the University of Calgary, so this was right up his ally. The idea of the display was multi-fold. It gave visitors the opportunity to learn about the club and modelling WW2 subjects, learn about certain aspects of the war, and to discuss the actual events with a group of veterans. Because the event was held on Friday afternoon, it was touch and go as to how many club members would be able to show up, but in the end the turn out was great.

It was estimated that some 125 people came through the doors during the 4 hour display. They included not only students and staff from MRC, but also members of the general public and their families. These visitors were treated to model displays that covered subjects from both sides of the conflict; from boats to planes, and figures to tanks. Well known nose art expert Clarence Simonsen came in from Airdrie with a selection of 14 nose art panels he has re-created. Past club member Bill Cameron drove in from Okotoks with a collection of some 80 models in 1/72 scale covering just about every plane the RCAF used in the Second World War.

Clarence Simonsen provided material on nose art.

"The "Modelling the Second World War" event was a tremendous success in general. One thing that became clear though was the sheer enthusiasm and the fantastic response of the Rocky Mountain Model Club members. A dozen people took the day off to bring their models to MRC and display them to the public for over four hours. At first, I did not even know if I would get 50 kits on the tables but we did set a standard with 238 models on display for the entire show,” observed event organizer Stéphane. Those of us who were there would all agree that Stéphane did great job of putting this event together in such a short time. Not only did he arrange for the venue and displays, but he also got the media to show up, was able to get door prize donations from various hobby stores in town, and arranged for a number of veterans to attend.

Several veterans honoured the group by sharing their real-life experiences.

"As for the veterans, I was overwhelmed by their response too. We welcomed about 14 Second World War fighter and bomber pilots at the show, plus 3 postwar RCAF pilots. Among them were highly decorated heroes like 91-year old Group Captain Clifford Black DFC & Croix de guerre, Flight Lieutenant Rex Probert DFC, 90-year old Squadron Leader Thomas H. Hoare DFC, Squadron Leader Norm Loudoun DFC, Warrant Officer Bob Petersen, and Warrant Officer Hank Ernst. It was a delightful sight to see them all and those students who came forward to talk to them had a blast. Most veterans stayed for 2-3 hours at the venue," Stéphane commented. Actually this was high light for most of the club members, myself included, as we bent the ear of more than one veteran, in some cases standing in awe as they retold stories of their exploits all those years ago. And as an added bonus, the event raised $128 in donations for the veteran's food bank plus a box load of donated dry goods.

By most measures this was a highly successful event. Not only did it bring some exposure to the club, but it also shone a spot light on the exploits of some of the men who fought for Canada more than 60 years ago. From a personal perspective, I enjoyed speaking with the public at large, answering questions not only about model building but the club as well. And it was a real treat to listen to former aircrew members talk about the planes they flew while looking that the models we built. We can only imagine what it must have been like to fly and drive the subjects we build, but these men actually did it. It was fascinating and I hope we do it again.

(L to R) Standing: Stéphane Guevremont, Bill Cameron George Spelitz, Sean Campbell, Derwin Emro, Mike Grant, Clarence Simonsen and Allan Yeats. Kneeling: Massimo Santarossa, Colin Phillips, Scott McTavish and Tom Calbury.