Image: Jack Conrad holding a baby while sitting on a horse drawn wagon, 1945 (SPRA 259.08.09)
Force: RCAF
Jack Conrad, the second oldest of 6 siblings, was born on April 4, 1920 to parents Harlie and Florence (Davis) Conrad, in Grande Prairie AB. He took his early schooling at MacHenry (southwest of Sexsmith AB), then at Wellington (near Clairmont AB), and he finished his education at Clairmont Lake School. During WW II Jack joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. For the first two years he was stationed at the west coast of Vancouver Island, and then he was posted in England. There he met and married, Jean Farmer. (Jean was a Scottish W.A.A.F. who was serving in the R.A.F.). After the war they made their home in the Sexsmith area where Jack acquired a half section from the Veterans Land Act (S ½ 12-17-6-W6, the original homestead of David Sexsmith.) In the 1960`s he also purchased the north half of the section. Jack and Jean had 4 children: Colin, Calvin, Anne, and Holly. Jack, who was active in agricultural and community organizations, died suddenly at age 58 in March 1979 in Sexsmith.
Source: Wagon Trails Grown Over pp. 1149 (Name in Roll of Honour), 1154 (photo), 1128
Daily Herald Tribune Sept. 17, 1953 p.13 c. 3, July 29, 1954 p. 11 c. 2
AGS website – Obituary Index
Soldier Spotlight highlights veterans from the Archives’ online Soldiers’ Memorial. Each week, our volunteers select a remarkable individual to showcase in this blog series. The Soldiers’ Memorial commemorates more than 1,100 WWI veterans and 2,300 WWII veterans from our region. Three dedicated volunteers have contributed over 1,200 hours to this project by researching and writing biographies. Our goal is to have all South Peace soldiers acknowledged for their service. If you know of someone who lived in the South Peace and should be listed on the Memorial, or would like to get involved by researching a local veteran, please contact the Archives.