Title: Emotional Journey to South Kyme WW2 Crash Site Reconnects Family with Past
Carolyn Runstedler, a resident from Canada, embarked on an emotional trip to South Kyme, Lincolnshire, to attend a memorial service for her uncle, Flying Officer Lyle Whitham. Whitham was one of the eight crew members who tragically lost their lives in a crash involving their Halifax bomber, LK954 NA/E, on a golf course on 3 November 1943 during the Second World War. The plane had been on its return journey to RAF Middleton St George after conducting a bombing mission over Germany. The visit to the crash site was an intensely personal experience for Ms Runstedler as it connected her with her uncle’s heroic narratives that she had only heard of.
“I can see the reality – I can see where it all took place,” Ms Runstedler commented, shedding light on the impact of being physically present at the crash site. Her uncle, originally from North Bay, Ontario, was a young man of 23 when he met his fate. His remains rest in Cambridge. Along with her uncle, the memorial service in South Kyme also extended respect and honour to crew members Flying Officer Robert George Eaton, Flying Officer Allen Keith Hodgkinson, Flying Officer Bruce Alan Elmore, Sgt Allan Desmond Weigh, Sgt Albert Edward Moss, Pilot Officer Alan Edward MacKenzie, and Sgt Harry Bernard Shimwell.
The memorial service witnessed the attendance of representatives from the RAF, the Canadian Airforce, and the Canadian Navy. The event served as a potent reminder of the youthful soldiers who sacrificed their lives during the war. “I was overwhelmed with emotion the moment I saw these young men in their uniforms,” Ms Runstedler expressed. She emphasised the significance of acknowledging our history and understanding the war’s influence on countless families who lived in constant anticipation of news about their dear ones.
The memorial at the South Kyme’s golf club not only commemorates the disastrous crash, but it also stands as a symbolic testimony of Lincolnshire’s deeply rooted connections with the valorous airmen who were once a part of its airfields.
This piece has been produced by The Lincoln Post, based on original reporting from www.bbc.com.
