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Paratrooper recalls war experience

Veteran says he was glad to serve Canada
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Contributed photo A wartime photo of George Siggs, and a few of his medals.

Christmas, 1944, George Siggs and two-dozen of his comrades jumped into the night’s sky, gliding into Belgium.

When boots hit the ground, Siggs was in the Battle of the Bulge. It was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front.

Siggs was a motarman. He was responsible for carrying the barrel, and two other of his comrades were responsible for the base plate and the bio-pod.

“Once we got to the ground we had to get into our area, meet up and put it together. We fired 10-pound bombs,” Siggs told Peace Arch News Tuesday.

The battalion spent about two months going from Belgium into Holland, then back to England before parachuting across the Rhine river in Germany.

Focusing on his assignments kept his mind off the dangers, he said, although there was one situation when he got scared.

“We had to change our position from one spot to another because we were taking sniper fire. While travelling to our new position, we got motared by a German motor platoon. And, the fellow next to me got blown up, torn up pretty bad,” he said.

The man did not survive his injures. Of about 25 soldiers in Siggs’ platoon, three didn’t return home.

Now 92 years old, living a comfortable life in White Rock – a life he fought for – Siggs reminisces of the good times he had during the war.

“I loved being a paratrooper. It was a lot of fun, a lot of the guys were really great. Great friends and we were a bunch of crazies. To jump out of an airplane, you had to be crazy.”

Each Nov. 11, Siggs uses that day to remember those who were left on the battlefield.

“I get that reminisce. I start thinking about it, some of the friends I had and lost. Yeah, it’s a day to remember.”

Saturday, as in Remembrance Days past, he plans to lay a wreath.

Siggs said he’s “quite honoured” that Canada uses a day to remember veterans, noting that his father fought in the First World War and both his brothers fought in the Second World War.

Thanked for his service, Siggs had a simple response, one that shows the spirit of the Canadian Armed Forces.

“I was glad to do it.”



About the Author: Aaron Hinks

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