Gander, a large, black Newfoundland dog, will be foremost in the memory of a group of Canadian Battle of Hong Kong veterans and other dignitaries on Friday, 27 October 2000 when they attend a noon hour ceremony at 'Earnscliffe', the official residence of the British High Commissioner, on Sussex Drive in Ottawa. His Excellency Sir Andrew Burns who, after a distinguished term in Hong Kong, has recently arrived to take up the post of High Commissioner to Canada, will be the host for this gathering.

During the Second World War battle of Lye Mun on Hong Kong Island In December 1941 Gander attacked invading Japanese troops on the beach and shortly thereafter forced a unit of the invaders to change their direction of advance thereby saving several wounded soldiers from immediate death or capture. Later Gander saved the lives of several wounded soldiers of the Royal Rifles of Canada regiment by heroically picking up a live hand grenade that had landed among them. Gander ran off with the grenade in his jaws, saving the lives of several soldiers but was killed instantly in the subsequent explosion.

For this incident alone Gander will receive the PDSA Dickin Medal for bravery. The medal, commonly described as "the animal Victoria Cross", bears the words "We Also Serve". The medal is awarded for acts of extreme bravery in wartime by the PDSA (The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals) The British animal welfare charity has previously awarded fifty-four Dickin medals to animal heroes during and after the Second World War. Gander's award is retroactive to 1941 and will be the fifty-fifth and first awarded since 1949. It is also the first such award to a Canadian animal and Gander will henceforth be the only known Canadian animal military hero so honoured. General Sir Roland Guy, past Chairman of the PDSA, wilI arrive from Britain on Wednesday to present the Dickin Medal posthumously to Gander at the Friday ceremony. He will be accompanied by a Public Relations Manager for the PDSA, Ms. Isabel George. The ceremony at Earnscliffe will be attended by many dignitaries representing various Canadian veteran, military, historic, and charitable organizations. General Sir Roland Guy is a former senior officer of the King's Royal Rifle Corps with whom the Royal Rifles of Canada have been affiliated. He will officially hand the medal to veteran Frederick Kelly, former Rifleman of the Royal Rifles of Canada. Rifleman Kelly was one of Gander's handlers in Canada and during the battle in Hong Kong in December 1941.

After the presentation, Mr.Phillip Doddridge, Vice-President of the Hong Kong Veteran's Association of Canada (HKVA) will present the medal to Mr. Joe Geurts, Director of the Canadian War Museum. The medal will later be on display as part of the permanent Hong Kong exhibition in the Museum. The Hong Kong Veterans, headed by their President Mr. Harry Atkinson, are from all regions of Canada. Accompanying them will be a contingent from the Hong Kong Veterans Commemorative Association. This Association was formed by family and friends of the members of 'C' Force, the Canadian brigade at Hong Kong. The Association is dedicated to the interests of the veterans and their families and the preservation of the memory of the soldiers who fought in the Battle of Hong Kong.

Symbolically, the animal representative for Gander will be Rimshot, a Newfoundland dog owned by Mrs. Nina McNamara Côté of Bainsville, Ontario. To further enhance the historic perspective, a re-enactor in the uniform and equipment of a Canadian soldier of 'C Force' will be provided by the Canadian War Museum.

Along with the veteran members of the Royal Rifles will be members of the Winnipeg Grenadiers as well as some former members of the brigade headquarters with whom they served in 'C' Force. The story of these men deserves a more prominent place in the history of Canada. Inadequately trained, improperly armed and numerically overwhelmed they fought with what they had the most of - courage. Sacrificed through political and military ignorance they were forced to endure unbelievable hardships in captivity. Torture, forced labour of the most cruel kind, inadequate food and a shortage of medical supplies for more than three and a half years left many of those who did survive captivity to suffer physical and emotional problems throughout their lives. Canadian history has perhaps not always been kind or reflective of the true portent of the events that befell the Hong Kong regiments. Their struggle for recognition has been a long one. It is perhaps fitting that their fight and sacrifice should at last be brought to significant prominence by their very own mascot, Gander. Hopefully the story of Gander and his brave and selfless act in order to save his friends will help to keep alive the memory of those brave Canadian soldiers who, long ago and far away, "...... gave their yesterday for our tomorrow....."

The Dickin medal awarded to Gander the dog will be on display at the Canadian War Museum, in its Hong Kong section of the Second World War gallery, starting on October 28, 2000.