CWO William Howard Carlton, CD was a veteran of the Second World War and RSM of the 1^st Battalion of the Queen’s Own.

William (Bill) was born on May 11, 1925, in Foam Lake, Saskatchewan. He left for Toronto at age 13 and worked as a short order cook until he joined the army at age 16. He served in the First Canadian Parachute Battalion, becoming a paratrooper during WWII. He would always say, “I got a few extra dollars a month jumping out of airplanes.” He returned from the war, and headed to Calgary where he met the love of his life “Jo”. They were married in 1949 and had three children. He rose from the rank of Private to Chief Warrant Officer, serving in the 1st Battalion of the Queen’s Own Rifles where he was appointed as Regimental Sergeant Major of the 1^st Battalion from 13 May 1969 to 26 April 1970 after which time he was posted to the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.

Upon retiring from the military, he found that civilian life was less structured and he faced new challenges; he couldn’t understand why civilian time was different than military time. He worked at a major lumber company until his second retirement at age 65. His love and dedication to military life and Canada was evident throughout his life, yet his family was first and foremost.

He passed away on January 26, 2018 in Victoria, British Columbia.

With info and photos from the Victoria Times Colonist.