Thomas George Hills, Captain

Captain Thomas George Hills was born in Scarborough, Ontario on March 23, 1920. He enlisted with the Irish Regiment of Canada, as part of the 11th Infantry Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division, that was active primarily in mainland Italy. (There is a photo of Tom in uniform with his father, Ernest Albert Hills, below.) The Irish Regiment joined the 1st Canadian Infantry Division in November 1943, as part of 1 Canadian Corps, under command of the British Eighth Army. 

At one point he was a messenger, using a motorcycle as his mode of transportation. (There is a photo of him on one of the motorcycles below.) One day he had an important message and had to cross an intersection in a small town where German snipers were picking off soldiers. The tire of his motorcycle was blown out and he was knocked unconscious when he hit the ground. His superiors thought he was dead and sent a message of his death to his mother. Luckily, he awoke in the dead of night, made it back to his group and managed to get the message stopped. In another incident, he and some fellow soldiers found a pig, then killed and ate it. They didn't cure it properly and got food poisoning. He could never eat pork again for the rest of his life. 

When Tom came back from the war, he became an alcoholic. He joined AA and became very high in the ranks of the organization. He travelled the world speaking at AA events. He married Martha Elizabeth "Betty" Leslie Nov. 27, 1948, and had 4 children: Judith, James, Jacqueline, and Graham. In his spare time, he bred and raised Boxer dogs. Physical fitness was important to him, and he jogged every day. During the summer he was an avid water skier, and there is a photo below showing him skiing up to the dock. Tom died April 18, 1999.

We thank him for his service.

We will remember them. 

Photo 1 – Tom in his uniform with his father, Ernest Albert Hills

Photo 2 – Tom on the motorcycle

Photo 3 - Tom waterskiing