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His father’s secret war

Ernie Stern never talked about his role in the Second World War. One day, his son made a surprising discovery
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Above: Langley resident Otto Stern made a surprising discovery about his late father, finding a letter from someone in the Netherlands that was sent to Ernie Stern in 1980. It thanked him for his role in helping to liberate Holland during the Second World War; below: a photo of Ernie Stern and his wife, Dorothy, is the only known photo of the Canadian soldier in uniform.

Ernie Stern was a quiet man who didn’t like talking about the war.

He acknowledged he was a sniper for the Canadian Army during the Second World War, but he never went into detail.

“He said very, very little,” his son Otto Stern, a Langley resident, recalls.

His father seemed to prefer leaving his former military life in the past.

He never picked up a rifle after he came home from the war, never went hunting and never showed his son how to shoot.

Otto learned how to hunt and shoot from his older brother, Ted.

As far as Otto knows, his dad kept only one photo of himself in uniform, a faded hand-tinted picture taken with his wife, Dorothy.

Ernie Stern passed away in 2004, followed by his wife in 2009.

A while later, Otto was going through his parents’ home when he made an unexpected discovery.

There was an envelope in a drawer, covered with a dozen stamps, postmarked from the Netherlands.

Inside it was a framed certificate and a typewritten letter on plain paper dated May, 1980.

It was a note from a family in Aerdenhout, a small town in north Holland, thanking his father for his part in liberating the Netherlands.

It was from Niek van Uchelen and wife Ellen, who were children when the Canadian liberators arrived.

“We do remember every detail of your so-hoped-for appearance,” the letter said.

“Your beaming faces above your huge tanks … your happy kindness, contrasting with what we were accustomed to, the white bread you ate and gave to eat, the attractive chocolate and ever chewing gum” the couple wrote.

“Since that time we are speaking of “Our Canadians” and are recognizing the maple leaf in a sense as a symbol of our freedom.”

The certificate was distributed by the Netherlands government to residents who wished to convey gratitude toward specific Canadian veterans on the 35th anniversary of their arrival.

It expresses “thankfulness and gratitude towards Mr. Stern, who dedicated himself to the liberation of the Netherlands.”

Stern never mentioned the letter or the certificate to his sons.

“Wow,” Otto remembers thinking.

“We had no idea.”

As a sniper operating in the Netherlands, Ernie Stern would have been part of a specially trained platoon within his battalion, responsible for reconnoitering ahead of the regular soldiers.

The “scouts and snipers” were specially equipped and trained in stealth and camouflage.

They were said to be among the best snipers of any army because so many were experienced hunters from rural parts of Canada.

Ernie Stern’s family has tried to learn more about his military record with little success.

Ted Stern contacted Veterans Affairs to obtain his father’s military service files, but was surprised to learn that Ernie’s record will remain sealed for 20 years after his death.

According to the Veterans Affairs Canada website, that is standard practice in cases where a serviceman is not alive to give written permission.

It means a wait until 2024 before the brothers will finally learn more about Ernie Stern’s history in the Netherlands, where the First Canadian Army drove the German occupiers out.

The online Canadian Encyclopedia notes that more than 7,600 Canadian soldiers, sailors and airmen died fighting in the Netherlands.

They were buried in official war cemeteries across the country.

“Canadians are fondly remembered by the Dutch as both liberators and saviors who rescued millions from sickness and starvation in 1945,” The encyclopedia entry says.

“The joyous “Canadian summer” that followed forged deep and long-lasting bonds of friendship between the two countries.”



Dan Ferguson

About the Author: Dan Ferguson

Best recognized for my resemblance to St. Nick, I’m the guy you’ll often see out at community events and happenings around town.
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