405 Squadron welcomes original Pathfinder medals, artefacts discovered in a suitcase
July 25, current serving members of 405 (Long Range Patrol) Squadron gathered in front of the Greenwood Military Aviation Museum’s restoration Lancaster to welcome home the medals of fallen predecessors in the downed Second World War Halifax Bomber LQ-M for Mother.
The honours ended a 10-year journey that started with the purchase of an old suitcase from the estate of the McCracken family. Flight Officer Alexander McCracken was a LQ-M crewmember. Lieutenant-Colonel Lara Jennings, who represented 14 Wing Greenwood Commander Colonel Jeff Davis at the event, was thankful for the privilege of attending the presentation.
“I find, in this day and age, history and heritage are all too often overlooked and under-prioritized. It’s hard – we’ve got competing demands, no money, no people. History and heritage ends up falling to the wayside. So, it’s rare we’re afforded an opportunity to connect with our history, and it’s even more rare we’re offered an opportunity to be part of an unveiling of history such as this. I think we lack that a lot of times, and it’s what we really need: to remember our roots, and remember the importance of why we wear this uniform and what it actually represents.”
405 Squadron Commanding Officer Lieutenant-Colonel Dan Arsenault, echoed Jennings’ sentiments.
“As we reflect on the squadron’s history, we must also reflect on the impact it has had on parents, families, siblings and children who have all lost family members – but are reassured their history and legacy lives on with the efforts put forward by those who supported this project. It’s also important, as we embark on the centennial of the Royal Canadian Air Force, squadrons take time to pause, read, experience and rekindle the relationship that all of us have with our history.”
The lasting impact the story of Halifax Bomber LQ-M for Mother has had on the more than 40 people who contributed to the project is unmistakable. Ben Mayville, one of the researchers, was not alone shedding tears as he recounted the shooting down of the aircraft 80 years ago.
“This crew has become like a family throughout all this research. Getting to know the descendants and the crew through their letters, the artefacts – it’s become personal.”
And while Mike Tomczak, nephew of Flight Officer Marcel (Mickey) Tomczak, pilot for LQ-M; is grateful for the experience, which has helped connect him to the uncle he heard so much about in his youth, he expressed how bittersweet the conclusion of their journey is. During the donation of his late uncle’s medals, he thanked Frank Moore, the team’s lead, for including him in the project and bringing him closer to his father’s favourite brother, whom he was named after.
“I was Mickey when I was a child. I hated that name, but I really like it now.”
Moore himself felt an instant connection to the crew’s navigator, Flight Officer Alexander McCracken, which compelled him to take on the research of the crew’s history.
“McCracken was a Royal Banker, and I was a Royal Banker. He started in the trenches, like I did. He started as a junior clerk in a branch in Montreal; he graduated to a teller. I started as a junior clerk, and I graduated as a teller. There’s a big difference between McCracken and me: McCracken signed up for the air force. He served his country, and he gave his life. I had the opportunity of fulfilling my career. I had a successful career; I had kids; I had a wife.
“Why did our generation have such a great life? It was because of the men and women that protected our country during the Second World War. And I felt bound in duty to help preserve that memory.”
After discovering the story of McCracken and his crewmates, Moore was left with the important decision of finding a final resting place for the contents of the McCracken suitcase. His friend, Jeremy Van Dyke, remembers the struggle Moore had with finding a home for the medals.
“I remember Frank’s biggest fear was the suitcase was going to end up being separated and sold on Ebay to the highest bidder. And that would have been the end of the McCracken family and their legacy. When we talked, Frank mentioned how he wanted to keep that legacy alive, how he wanted to share it, how he wanted to commemorate that crew but, most importantly, keep that suitcase together, to keep that family together. It’s a great honour to bring those medals home to one of the best places where I think they can hang.”
Though Moore’s commitment over the last decade stemmed from a sense of kinship and duty towards LQ-M’s crew, Lieutenant-Colonel Terry Wong, who posthumously presented the Second World War medals to McCracken at his gravesite in 2018, wished to recognize the honour, persistence and dedication towards the RCAF Moore displayed throughout the project. At the close of the ceremony, on behalf of Canada, the RCAF and the 405 Squadron Pathfinders, Wong presented Moore with the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, awarded by Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada. The award is the highest presentable honour for volunteer service within our Canadian honours system.
