POSTING #45

Amelia; The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers; Short Stuff (Mini-Stories about Kids and Pets)

Amelia

In the fall of 2007 we were negotiating the sale of our lakefront home in Grimsby to a family from Oakville.

During those discussions, Chris, who is a location manager in the movie industry, was spending a good bit of his time at the Niagara District Airport in Virgil making arrangements for the use of the airport for scenes to be included in a film about Amelia Earhart.

Filming took place in late June and early July last year and we enjoyed watching from the back deck of our new home as vintage aircraft, followed by a modern plane with a film crew, performed various aerobatic maneuvers.

Although there were rumours that the stars, Richard Gere and Hilary Swank, would be coming that doesn't seem to have been the case---at least according to one waitress who chased down each of the rumours so she could have a look at hunky Richard.

The eternally cash-strapped airport was happy to receive $25,000 for the rental of the grounds and hopes that this was just the first of many films.

The film was released locally on October 22 and although the reviews weren't good Pat and I decided to see it last Sunday, because of the Virgil connection.

Too late.

Amelia had come and gone.

We'll have to wait for the DVD, which, given the short run here, shouldn't be a very long wait.

The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers

When I took over the London Immigration office in 1963. I was introduced to the locally engaged officials, who were all English except for one man, Bill Attewell, who when we shook hands pointed out that he was Canadian, had been in the RCAF during the war and had decided to stay in Britain.

He seemed to be in his 60s, with a lived-in face and hair that looked as though it had been touched up a bit. Later, someone told me that he had a young daughter and that he didn't want to be mistaken for her grandfather.

His work involved preparing landing documents for immigrants, work that had to be absolutely accurate and often had to be completed under pressure---immigrants wouldn't get their passports until the last minute and then our office had to rush to get the documents to them so they could catch their ships or planes.

He was an intense and concentrated worker. Things had to be done correctly or he became upset.

Personally, I found that a very good character trait because it helped me sleep better at night---knowing that I wouldn't be getting rockets from Ottawa about inaccurate documents.

And then came a surprise about Bill.

Someone told me that he had been a Wing Commander at the UK Headquarters of the RCAF during World War II and had played a very key role in supporting the Canadian fighters and bombers.

In recognition of his work King George VI had made him a Member of the British Empire and the City of London had made him a Freeman of the City.

This was Bill Attewell in our documents section!

What was going on?

Why was he, with his background, doing clerical work in our office?

I had two theories. One was that he had a good retirement pension and was just looking for something to keep himself occupied.

The other (and I guess they are not mutually exclusive) was that his work during the war had taken a considerable toll and although he needed some stress he didn't want to have to cope with managing a lot of people.

I never did solve this mystery. Although we occasionally had lunch together in the cafeteria, it was usually with others and he didn't open up very much.

Bill did explain to me that being a Freeman of the City of London came with certain privileges. Among them was one that permitted a Freeman to drive sheep across London Bridge, a privilege that went back to the 11th century.

Bill said that he had never attempted this, but I have found an article about another Freeman of London---Amanda Cottrell---who drove 6 sheep across the bridge last year to give publicity to two causes: the Save Canterbury Cathedral Appeal, and Produced in Kent, a scheme to persuade people to buy local produce. Click here for this fun article.

Bill also told me that a Freeman has the right to join one of the ancient London guilds, for example the guilds of goldsmiths or silversmiths. In medieval times, the guilds existed to protect their trade and their members, but now while they promote their industry they are primarily social and charitable organizations, often with ancient guildhalls that they look after.

As I recall (I'm not too sure about this) Bill decided that because his father had had some connection with the fruit business---perhaps owned a store, or perhaps worked as a clerk in one---he would join the 700 year-old Worshipful Company of Fruiterers.

And he invited me to the annual banquet of the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers. He said that it would introduce me to an aspect of London life that I wouldn't otherwise experience.

Apparently the Fruiterers no longer had a hall of their own (I don't recall what happened to it) so the banquet would be held in another guild's hall.

At the banquet, he was a gracious host, explaining the significance of the rituals and the elaborate livery worn by the officers of the Company (it was an impressive show--the kind that only the British can mount), and introducing me to members of the Company. All of this was fascinating to a person from the 'Colonies'.

The dinner was superb, filet mignon (I think) with the best Bordeaux I have ever tasted (of that, I am absolutely sure).

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and told him so. He seemed to be pleased that I had liked the experience.

For that evening he was no longer the person I was used to seeing, a person bent over immigration documents. He was a Wing Commander, a Member of the British Empire, and a Freeman of the City of London.

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In doing some research for the above, I came across more information on Bill Attewell, information that I wish I had known when we were working together.


• He immigrated to Canada in 1914 just before the start of World War I when he was only 15 years old;
• He then lied about his age to get into the Canadian Army so he could flight in the War;
• He was seriously wounded in Europe and was invalided back to Canada;
• He became an aircraft mechanic and then joined the RCAF in the 1920s;
• He started in the RCAF as a lowly airman but was commissioned as an officer in 1940.

As I write the stories for this Blog, I feel again and again that I should have found out more about the people I was meeting.

Bill Attewell is right at the top of that list.

I understand that Bill died at the age of 69, just three years after I returned to Canada from London.

He was a good guy.

Short Stuff (Mini-Stories about Kids and Pets)

The other day I was coming into the house when I heard deep and ferocious barking from just down the street.

I stopped to see what the trouble was.

A woman was pulling on a German shepherd-type dog but he kept turning his head and looking back at a boy with inline skates who was shooting a ball at a net with a hockey stick.

Each time the dog turned he barked, long and deep.

Assuming the dog wanted to attack the boy, perhaps because of the stick or the skates, I was glad the woman had a good grip on the leash.

As she came past our house she said, "It is so embarrassing taking him for a walk. Whenever he sees a ball he goes crazy. He just loves balls."

It wasn't the boy on skates he wanted.

It was just the ball.



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See you next Sunday for Posting #46 with more stories from our family’s universe! If you have comments or suggestions, please leave a comment at the bottom of this posting, or email me at johnpathunter@cs.com.