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A Royal Canadian Navy Historical Project
In memory of those who have Crossed the Bar
BOWEN, Wilfred Orville - Veteran, WWII, Retired Customs and Excise Canada, Longtime Member McLeod-Stewarton United Church. Peacefully, at home, surrounded by family, on Wednesday, June 10, 2009 in his 83rd year. Beloved husband, for 61 years of Hazel Eva Ruth Davis. Loving father of George Orville and his wife Heather Coulter and Patricia Anne and her husband Gerald Gourgon. Much loved Pappa of Abbie Courtney Gourgon and her fiancé Rock Gaudreau. Son of the late Bruce Hamilton Bowen and Etta Lavina Gload. Dear brother of Merton (Stella), Stewart (Annette), the late George, the late Bob (former wife Anna Ford), Barbara and Helen (Nick Daneliak). Also survived by sister-in-law Isabella Morrison (the late Eldon) and brother-in-law Hiram Davis (Margaret). Predeceased by sisters-in-law Helen Craig (the late George), Agnes Walls (the late Hiram) and Ethel Delorme (the late Arnold). Loving uncle and great-uncle to many nieces and nephews. Friends may call at the Westboro Chapel of Tubman Funeral Homes, 403 Richmond Road (at Roosevelt) on Friday 6-9 pm and on Saturday 9:30-11 am. Funeral Service will be held at Centretown United Church, 507 Bank Street (at Argyle) on Saturday, at 12 noon, Rev. Grant Dillenbeck officiating, follow by reception. Interment, Capital Memorial Gardens at 3:00 pm. For those wishing, a donation to the Heart and Stroke Foundation would be appreciated.
Enlisted in the RCNVR at HMCS Carleton on 21 Feb 1944 and was demobilized at HMCS Carleton on 14 Feb 1946
Ships served in: HMCS CHICOUTIMI - Served in Chicoutimi 02 Mar 1945 - 08 Mar 1945 while in training at HMCS Cornwallis HMS TOWY - Served in Towy 26 May 1945 - 21 Jun 1945 as an A/AB, RCNVR TUG CLIFTON - Served in Clifton 02 Aug 1945 - 31 Aug 1945 as an A/AB, RCNVR
(1) Portrait of Orville Bowen (2) Naval Training and Active Service record (3) Orville & Merton Bowen at a portrait studio in Ottawa (4) Eldon Climer & Orville Bowen (5) "The Boys" - ship unknown (6-8) HMS Towy K294
(9-14) The Towy went out to Sable Island to tow a ship that was stuck in a sand bar. On the way, she hit a storm and the entire ship was iced up.
(9) HMS Towy K294 ice-up (10) "My Harbour Station" (11) "This is me and don't laugh I was damned near frozen" (12) "Here you see the steps I was on. The two black streaks are the bars, without the ice." (13) "That's me chipping ice" (14) HMS Towy's Signalman
photo 15 Here are a few of the crew, they are all the boys from up forward in my mess. Can you find me?
Johnny Moffat, Bill Jackson, Eugene Stephenson, Bill "Boogy" Cook, Harry Baber, Bill Graham, Art Evans, J. Jones, I. Williams, J. Watts, G.A. Bedard, Calour "Cab", Dave "Flin Flon", Walden, Brownlee "Brownie", C. Loy
(16) Floyd Heide on the bridge - ship unknown (17) Wilfred Bowen on an unknown ship (18) Mrs. Ritchie with her two youngest daughters (19) Isabel & Betty Ritchie, the two elder Ritchie daughters (20) Mrs. Ritchie (21) Isabel & Betty Ritchie with a friend, shopping in Glasgow (22) Donald, Bruce and Stewart Bowen (23) Bruce Hamilton Bowen
Note for photos 18-21: When he was in Glasgow, Pappa stayed with the Ritchie family. The first night he had supper with them, he was really excited to see canned prunes for dessert and ate them all. Mr. Ritchie told him they were rationed and Pappa felt terrible. Later, in the cover of darkness, he "liberated" some supplies from the ship's galley, namely white sugar, carob powder for "kai" and other hard to come by items. He was forgiven.
(24) Unknown merchant ship burning / sinking (25) Postcard of the battleship HMS Nelson (26) The Bowen clan - Merton, Orville & Bruce (standing); George and Bob (seated in middle row); Helen, Barbara & Stewart (seated in front) (27) Bruce and Orville Bowen (28) Bruce Bowen & Eric Pitcher (29) Unknown woman on the left, Bruce Bowen & Doris (Tootsie) (30) Unknown gentleman on the left, Merton & Bruce Bowen (31) Bob, Merton & Barbara Bowen
(32) Bruce, Deltrie & Orville Bowen (33) Merton, Deltrie & Bruce Bowen (34) Barbara, Merton & Helen Bowen
Courtesy of Abbie Gourgon
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For Posterity's Sake 
