John Claude GRAHAM

DFC and Bar Wing Commander, Royal Air Force WWII Peacefully in hospital in London, England on July 19, 2002, in his 86th year, of cancer. Beloved son of the late Claude Graham (1968) and Florence (MacArthur) Graham (1992) of Ottawa; brother of William Graham of Ottawa; father of Rosemary Graham of Cambridge, England; uncle of Marcia Taylor of Ashton, Ontario and Laurie Graham of Ottawa; and cousin of Jane Barclay of Toronto, Geoffrey Graham of Montreal, and Quiller Graham of Ottawa. Predeceased by wife Dorrie Bremner of Wick, Scotland (1964) and wife Grace Preston of London, England (1996). John left Ottawa in 1938 to join the Royal Air Force, where he served with distinction until his retirement in 1961. He logged over 4,000 hours on more than 25 aircraft types while serving in Wick, Iceland, the Azores, Ceylon, Singapore and Germany. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross during the war, and was awarded a Bar to his DFC in 1958 while commanding 228 Squadron, Coastal Command, during war in the Oman. This was the last DFC awarded to an RAF officer in peacetime. After his retirement from the RAF, "Jack", as he was known to his Ottawa friends, steadfastly sought out new professional and personal challenges. He moved to South Africa and managed the Settlers' Inn in Grahamstown until 1981, and then returned to the U.K. and worked with a London charity until his final retirement at age 75. Still with high energy and the love of new adventures, he traveled extensively. In the last five years of his life he revisited the Oman, trekked to the base camp on Mount Everest, snowmobiled in Iceland, and crossed the Arctic Circle in Siberia. While in Iceland, he singularly sought out and found the long forgotten Selfoss Airfield, which precipitated the establishment of an RAF memorial on the site. His illness incapacitated him for only a few months and so he managed to stay in his home right to the end. His family and friends will continue to be inspired by his energy and his determination to "Press on, regardless." John's ashes will be scattered in the Garden of Remembrance in Coventry, England. The Ottawa Citizen, 03-08-2002