In 1939, when Paul Porcina's three siblings volunteered to serve in the Canadian Armed Forces, it seemed to him that he should join too. Just 15 at the time, he was not eligible because of his age and by the time he turned 18, in 1942, the Canadian Government refused his service.
"I was called to service but I was froze on the farm because of the shortage of labour. I had to stay on the farm. They said three from one family was enough," said Paul Porcina.
Now 92, and a resident at Ironwood Estates seniors complex, Porcina wrote a poem last year titled We Shall Not Forget. It's a tribute to his family's war contributions but also to the sacrifices made by all Canadian soldiers.
Memories of the past World Wars, remind us of the way,
We honour our fallen comrades, on Remembrance Day.
Hidden within the rhyming couplets are the feelings that the young Paul must have felt when his two big brothers and his sister left all at once, to join the war effort.
War took them to different parts of Europe, they did not complain,
Proudly they served our country, their efforts were not in vain.
It was that long fought, and unforgettable World War II,
That took away my two brothers and my sister too.
The family farm was near the little town of Derwent in eastern Alberta, a town so small it no longer exists. It's hard to imagine what it was like to leave their safe home in that isolated part of Alberta, which still didn't have a railroad connection, and then to head off to war and the big cities of Europe. Paul thought often about his siblings' loneliness so far from home.
Separating they served in different parts of Europe, far across the sea, Larry in the Air Force, Steve in the Artillery and postal service for Marie.
Paul was left to help his parents on the farm. Doing most of the labour was hard, he said during an interview in his Ironwood Estates home.
"It was scary when they left. They were all overseas for Christmas 1939," Paul said.
His brother Steve was seven years older, and was 22 when he signed up.
“The war changed him. He served in Italy, but he would never talk about it. You could talk generally about the war and so on, but he wouldn't say anything.”
His sister Marie, who was four years older, went to England and served in the military postal service.
“She was the only woman from the Derwent area to join,” said Paul, still proud of his older sister and her contributions.
Brother Larry was five years older and served in the air force ground-crew in England.
As he wrote his poem last year, Porcina remembered his siblings, but also those who lost their lives in both world wars.
Thousands more Canadians joined, they fought side by side. Bringing peace to the world, my brothers and sister came back alive.
But thousands gave up their lives in Flanders Fields they lay,
Never to see the colour of the poppies, or again see the light of day.
Writing poetry is not a new thing for Paul. As a youth he wrote many poems and later songs, which he and fellow band members would play at the legions around Vermilion and Lloydminster. Throughout his life, whenever he had time, he would make up songs and poetry.
"I could just look at something and write a song about it in those days," he said, adding that he played several instruments including the accordion to accompany his music.
Paul stayed on the family farm until 1945 when he married. Later he had his own farm but he sold it and moved to Edmonton where, despite having only a Grade 8 education, he went on to be a successful construction company owner. His company Cozy Homes built many homes in St. Albert's Grandin Park. He also owned a second company, Royal Oak, and built high-rise apartment buildings on Jasper Avenue and near Northlands shopping centre.
He began writing poems in earnest again five years ago after moving to Ironwood Estates. He has read some of his favourite poems aloud to commemorate events such as Remembrance Day. He no longer sings, he said, but other friends sometimes perform his songs for him.
In his poem, Paul reflects upon how the Second World War changed the course of his own life and those of family members.
They sacrificed their lives for us, what more could they give.
They brought peace back to our world, so we may peacefully live.
Now in his ninth decade, Paul Porcina has outlived his siblings and he thinks of that too as he writes his poems of remembrance.
"I was the youngest. Now I am the only one left," he said.
