William George Hill was born December 8,1928 in Calgary, Alberta. His parents owned the Buffalo Hills Ranch near Vulcan, Alberta so he spent his early years in Vulcan. At the age of 19 on August 26, 1943 he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy reserve. His mother was not happy with this! However, all his friends were enlisting so he did. His two older sisters had already enlisted. William’s active service started on November 8, 1943 so off to war he went never having seen the ocean. He served on the corvette ship “TECUMSCH” and spent 250 days on the high seas. He often spoke of how hard life was on a corvette – always cold and always wet. Amongst his travels he docked in Londonderry and Belfast, Ireland where many of his mother’s relations lived. William took them special treats and years after they spoke kindly of his visits. William was a great supporter of the Army and Navy Club and the Royal Canadian Legion. His grandchildren remember fondly the days of pull tickets and big plates of fries at the Legion. November 11th was always a big day in his house and, of course, for his family watching their father walk with the other veterans. He passed away on June 11th 1985. William Hill is the father of Cathy Papp a resident of Lethbridge.
