"SMOKEY" SMITH

[Frank Misztal]

Originally posted by Vets_Dottir
A rebellious sort I think...I seem to remember reading something about Smokey refusing to follow higher ups orders if following thru on them would put his men at risk. It sounds liked he definately refused/rebelled, but for altruistic reasons. If thats so... I sure as hell like Smokey's attitude. ...

You're right about that. I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Smokey, when he went with us to Vimy Ridge in Nov '97. I was part of the NDHQ honour guard that participated in 3 ceremonies between 7 & 10 Nov.

Smokey was quite the character on the plane and at the hotel bar in Lille, France. When someone asked him about his VC, he said that he didn't know what the fuss was all about. He said he was half-pissed when he did what he did. He also noted that anyone who went into battle like that needed to have a few or they wouldn't have survived.

For those interested, the ceremonies we participated in were: the remembrance at the Vimy monument, a dedication at the Beaumont Hamel monument and, the burial of 3 remaining crew members of a downed Halifax bomber that were found in a bog in Belgium (The whole crew are now back together in a small cemetery of a village just west of Brussels. This was, by far, the most moving ceremony I've ever attended).

Incidentally, that was the first time I set foot on Belgian soil (where I was born) since I left there in 1956. Unfortunately, we did not have time to go to Brussels (where I lived for a couple years before emigrating), some 35km east of the little village we were in.