In celebration of Bill's full and successful life I would like to recount some portions you may not know much about.

My own first real contact with Bill was 61 years ago when we were among 30 other RCAF officers, newly commissioned in the Special Radio Branch. This group first gathered in September 1941 at RCAF Station Trenton to begin training in the Rules and Regulations of the Airforce. We remained together for the next 5 months and formed bonds that still endure. Four others of that group were able to join us here today to pay our respects to Bill, a great friend and an outstanding comrade.

None of us knew then that Bill's service career would be unique, not only among us but, no doubt, among all Radar officers.

My association and friendship with Bill was in 4 separate phases:
- Our Airforce Days,
- Our University Days,
- Our Working Career, and
- Our Retirement.

I intend to concentrate mainly on the Airforce phase, with only brief comment on the others.

Our Airforce Days: After a month at Trenton we moved to Clinton Ontario for a 2-month course in Radar and then on to Halifax to board a 6000-ton banana boat on Jan 8, 1942. We lost our convoy after our second day out and it took us 12 days to reach England.

From Liverpool we all went to the RCAF Reception Depot in Bournemouth on the south coast of England and stayed in short-lived high style at the Anglo-Swiss Hotel. From there our group was split up as we were posted separately to various Radar sites in the UK on temporary assignment. We were now essentially transferred to the RAF to learn about running Radar stations on active service.

Inside 10 weeks, by the end of March, almost all the group had been posted to Egypt where they arrived during May, just as Rommel and the Africa Corp were pressing towards El Alamein where they were finally held. The British 8^th Army was now able to build up for the November offensive to push Rommel back out of Africa. The story now concentrates on Bill's particular experience.

Shortly after arriving in Egypt he was posted to 162 Squadron to act as a liaison officer in calibrating Radar stations in Palestine and Iraq waiting for the Allied offensive to begin. After the 8^th Army's breakout at Alamein which threw the enemy into retreat westward, Bill was posted to Tobruk where his unit spent a miserable winter on poor rations and little water.

In May, 1943 he was posted back to Cairo to take command of a new unit, 871 AMES, and to start his journey westward again towards Tripoli. This Unit was a class of Radar designed and equipped to enable a specially trained operator called a Controller to direct an RAF fighter pilot towards an enemy bombing raid that was being tracked on the Radar screen. It could also provide the usual function of alerting forward army units of approaching enemy aircraft.

After reaching Tripoli, 871 prepared to participate in the Army landings on Sicily in July/43, then at Salerno in August, followed by Anzio in Jan/44 and eventually on the south of France in August 1944. In all these landings Bill and his unit were with the army and very much in harm’s way. They had to get the Radar equipment off the barge, off the beach-head and get set up in an operating state while the beaches were sometimes still under enemy fire. It was only then that defending fighters could be directed towards enemy aircraft and front-line troops warned of impending air attacks. This called for a high level of performance under difficult and dangerous conditions.

This was recognized by both Army and RAF Headquarters and the 871 AMES was mentioned in despatches for its outstanding performance on these four landings. Since the station commander was considered largely responsible for this high level of technical skill and extremely high morale, Bill was awarded an MBE, thus becoming a Member of the Order of the British Empire, a richly deserved decoration.

No other radar unit was so distinguished. So all you Lowers, Greenlands and Edneys, you are quite justified in taking great pride in your Dad and Granddad. Bill was posted back to England in Jan1945 and then back home in February and received his discharge in September. He was just in time to enroll in Engineering Physics at the University of Toronto and thus begin phase 2 of my association with him.

Our University Days: I also got discharged in time to enroll the University of Toronto. Who then should I see in the enrollment queue but Bill Lower and Alan Revill whom I hadn’t seen for three and a half years. It was a joyous reunion which spread to others as we began to make the reconnections.

University life was routine except for Bill's marriage to Mary after our first year and the fact our second year was to take place in Ajax. We had to live in residence so Bill and I roomed together. He continued to complain that, after a few months of marriage to Mary, I was a crummy substitute roomate.

Our Retirement: After our working careers were over Ida and I spent great vacation time in Myrtle Beach with Bill and Mary on an annual basis. Golf was the main attraction and Bill tried very hard to help me improve my game but to little avail. I am sure that was the only thing he failed at. I still have a nasty slice.