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BԪַHope for the bestBԪַ: D-Day vet, 100, speaks on war and remembrance

Second World War veteran Richard Rohmer says 80th anniversary trip may be his last
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Canadian Lt.-Gen. Richard Rohmer takes part in the veterans reception as part of the D-Day 75th Anniversary British International Commemorative Event at Southsea Common in Portsmouth, England on Wednesday, June 5, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Richard Rohmer is not sentimental when he says, matter-of-factly, that this may be his last D-Day anniversary trip to France.

At 100 years old, the Second World War veteran says this 80th anniversary is his last decennial commemoration, and perhaps the last time he makes the trip to France at all.

BԪַThis is the last one. This is the 80th anniversary and there wonBԪַt be any others to follow because weBԪַre running out of people,BԪַ he said of the anniversaries marked every 10 years.

BԪַBut the opportunity to be there for the 80th is an important one to me because I was there for the beginning.BԪַ

Rohmer is part of a dwindling camp of Canadian veterans who fought in a battle that altered the course of the war, and the course of the 20th century.

On NormandyBԪַs shores, the largest-ever land, sea and air invasion took German defences by surprise on June 6, 1944 and marked the beginning of an 11-month liberation campaign that would end with Allied victory and Adolf HitlerBԪַs defeat.As a then-20-year-old reconnaissance-fighter pilot, who joined the war effort in 1942, Rohmer surveilled the skies overhead during the battle.

BԪַItBԪַs hard for anybody whoBԪַs alive now to understand how deep that change could have been if we had failed,BԪַ Rohmer said. BԪַThe people who were the enemy were very hard at work and trying to conquer the rest of the world. We made sure they didnBԪַt.BԪַ

WhatBԪַs true for Rohmer, about this being his last decennial, is likely true for many veterans who fought and survived the fateful battle. It invariably raises the question of how to ensure their memories and lessons are preserved.

In an interview from his care home at TorontoBԪַs Sunnybrook Veterans Centre ahead of the D-Day anniversary, Rohmer spoke about the legacy of the war, returning to Normandy and the importance of remembrance.

A prolific author and distinguished lawyer, Rohmer remains a student of world events, and tied his reflections on the war to his fears about authoritarian strongmen around the world, the importance of preserving democracy, and to the suffering in Gaza.

BԪַI know I will live forever in a sense. And I know I will not live forever in a sense,BԪַ said Rohmer ahead of his departure with CanadaBԪַs delegation to France to mark the occasion.

Nearly 150,000 Allied troops stormed the French beaches on D-Day, including 14,000 Canadians. About 359 Canadians were killed that day and another 5,000 died in the ensuing months of battle.

Veterans Affairs Canada estimates that about 9,297 veterans of the Second World War and Korean War were still alive as of March 2023. The tally does not differentiate between the two wars.

At 100 years old, Rohmer would not be faulted for opting out of the transatlantic trip with CanadaBԪַs delegation. Yet, he said his life has been marked by seizing opportunities as they come.

BԪַIf thereBԪַs an opportunity to let people know that (those) events changed the world 80 years ago, then itBԪַs well worthwhile,BԪַ said Rohmer, who served as chair of CanadaBԪַs advisory committee on the planning of the 60th anniversary and served as an adviser to the 70th.

BԪַThe only thing to expect is change and to make sure that the best you can, that you can influence the course of events, which is one of the things that IBԪַve always tried to do in my life.BԪַ

And influential Rohmer has been.

Among his list of accomplishments, he chaired a provincial royal commission on publishing in the 1970s and as a lawyer played a pivotal role in the development plans for the Ontario Science Centre, as well as the CN Tower and the surrounding area.

One of the most decorated citizens in Canada, RohmerBԪַs shirt is weighed down during the interview by more than a dozen awards pinned above his breast pocket, including the Order of Canada and the Distinguished Flying Cross.

For him, a legacy of D-Day is the successful fight for inclusive democracy against those who wanted to take it away, he said, and for a Canada where people around the globe can come to make a home.

BԪַThe reality is the atmosphere for the reception of people all over the world is still here, itBԪַs very strong. And if the Germans had succeeded back in wartime, we wouldnBԪַt have had this type of growth,BԪַ he said, after making reference to the roughly 400,000 annual newcomers expected to arrive in Canada.

Yet, he said the BԪַvery realBԪַ possibility of another world war remains. ItBԪַs been that way for BԪַall the months and years and daysBԪַ since the end of the last one, he added.

BԪַPeople are still prepared to go to war. And that hasnBԪַt changed and is one of the greatest threats to world peace.BԪַ

D-Day is, in part, remembered as a prodigious feat of international military co-operation. Rohmer said that underlying co-operation between like-minded nations remains the BԪַessential element of keeping our world peace,BԪַ praising the BԪַvarious bodiesBԪַ that help administer it.

BԪַThe opportunity to talk nation to nation is essential and has to be maintained. And whether it is maintained BԪַ I think weBԪַre going to find out in a fairly short period of time the way things are moving at the moment,BԪַ he said.

He lamented the rise of authoritarian strongmen in BԪַhuge territorial countriesBԪַ with BԪַhuge populationsBԪַ and BԪַhuge trade objectives.BԪַ As a still-serving member of the Forces, he was careful not to name names.

BԪַItBԪַs a frightening mix when itBԪַs not led by a group of people and instead itBԪַs just one. And we are watching very carefully to see what that one is going to do in several countries at the same time.BԪַ

When asked to reflect on the immense suffering and loss of life experienced during the Second World War, he interrupted to say that suffering continues.

BԪַAnd itBԪַs experiencing right now in Gaza BԪַ just unbelievable stuff going on,BԪַ he said.

Humanity will not change BԪַjust because we tell it to,BԪַ he said. But what we can do, he said, is hope.

He said he felt that hope even in the depths of the war and in the near-death encounters he had over the 135 missions he flew during the global conflict.

BԪַHope for the best. Hope for the best. Hope for the best. Hope for the best,BԪַ he said, almost like a prayer or an invocation, as he leaned on his walker, put on his military cap and made his way out of the room.

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