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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, November 11, 2016 | 20 John Bkila Sub-Editor jbkila@oakvillebeaver.com Bronte man's memoir reflects on service in Second World War by Julia Le Oakville Beaver Staff Artscene "Connected to your Community" D r. Douglas Peter Walmsley was 21-year-old when he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in 1940. The beloved Bronte doctor, who died at the age of 95 in 2014, went overseas in January 1943 and didn't return home until September 1945. His time spent stationed in London and what life was like for military personnel and civilians during the Second World War is reflected in his memoir, Glimpses of the Past, which was recently released by his family. 140-page book The 140-page book is a look at Walmsley's life history, including his view of the 1930s, what it was like being a member of the RCAF during the Second World War, his years as a doctor and what life was like living in Bronte. It's being sold for $15 at Walton Memorial United Church in Oakville, of which he was a member for 60 years and acted as a trustee, served on committees and was involved with the bible study classes. Proceeds will support the church. His grandson Paul Fletcher told the Oakville Beaver Wednesday (Nov. 9) how much he has learned about his grandfather as he took on the task of completing the memoir for Walmsley, who had begun working on it in his early 80s, but was unable to complete it before his death. "The stories he wrote about while deployed overseas were very interesting," described Fletcher, who grew up in Oakville, but now lives in Burlington. Dr. Douglas Walmsley and Paul Fletcher, who was almost two years old in this photo taken in 1982. Below, an old photo of Walmsley and the bookcover of Glimpses of the Past. | submitted photo in some cases within multiple generations. He retired in 1995 and worked as a volunteer at the old Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital on Reynolds Street in the dialysis unit and as a pianist in the rehabilitation ward. Walmsley was also a member of the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) for 62 years and the Probus Club of Oakville. He earned a number of accolades, including winning the Oakville Community Spirit award in 2009 and the OMA's 2014 Physicians Care Award for Halton. Handwritten notes Although it took some time to sift through his grandfather's handwritten notes with the help of his grandmother Shirley, Fletcher said it was a rewarding experience. "It was truly a pleasure putting this book together because it felt like I was spending time with him again," said Fletcher, describing his grandfather as a second father to himself. "Someone I shared an early copy with told me, `Reading this felt like Doug was right there talking to me.' I tried to preserve the writing style as he originally wrote it. I think if you knew him you will read this in his voice in your head." Fletcher continued what he found most interesting while compiling the memoir were other pieces of writings that weren't necessarily written for the purpose of the memoir. "The second half of the book is actually a collection of short essays, book reviews, study notes, and other interesting things he decided to write about over the years," he said. The book will soon be available on Amazon.ca. "There were so many waves of devastating bombings, it was shocking to read about how people eventually became desensitized to them, as if accepting the fact that life and death was just left to chance," he continued. In the book, Walmsley writes, "We got used to the raids and were able to remain in our room at night, regardless of enemy attacks." Fletcher said it was "chilling" reading about his grandfather discovering an unexplored incendiary bomb in his backyard after one of the attacks. The memoir also details how after returning home from the war, he attended medical school in Winnipeg, which is how he met his wife Shirley. "Her brother Harold and my grandfather were enrolled in the same class," Fletcher said. "They moved around quite a bit after they got married, but finally settled down in Bronte in 1954 where he opened his own family practice and remained there ever since." Walmsley, who had two children, Linda Fletcher and Richard Walmsley (deceased), with Shirley, was the family doctor of the first "test-tube twins" in Canada and was present for their birth. 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