A Wellington Terrace Long Term Care Home resident finally received her medal for her service in WWII.
108 year old Lucie Anna Joan Fuller was born in England who served with the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force as a radar operator and was station primarily at RAF Castlerock in Northern Ireland where she detected and plotted aircraft movements during the war.
She was later posted to RAF Swingate Down near Dover, monitoring air traffic over the English Channel and the Thames Estuary.
Joan continued her service even after the death of her younger brother in 1943 in Italy.
This past November, Joan had met with Beau Harper of Solider Search where it was found she had never received her medal of which she was entitled to.
Solider Search is a website where World War II and Korean War stories are shared.
Harper has traveled all across Canada from Victoria, British Columbia to Halifax, Nova Scotia to interview veterans.
It’s believed Joan didn’t receive her medal as she followed her future husband, Christopher Fuller to Canada in 1947 before she could get her medal.
Harper, the founder of Solider Search says it was the reaction of Joan and her family to finally receive her medal which truly made an impact.
“Fast forward 80 years here we are with a women who probably didn’t expect to be getting a medal and she got a medal. The best part about that day for me was how much it meant to her and how much it meant to her daughter. I think it gave them a newfound appreciation for her service.” said Harper
Harper says as our veterans age, he’s encouraging those who know any veterans to ask them about their story.
“I think a lot of people are afraid, that they’ll be turned away that they won’t want to share what they’ve seen. In my experience, its been the opposite. I remember interviewing a veteran who landed on D-Day, Jim Parks, he landed with the Royal Winnipeg Rifles in the first wave he said ‘it really helps me to share my story, it helps to share what I’ve went through’ I let them take the story in whatever direction they want”
While millions of these medals have been awarded to World War II veterans, it’s believed Joan is the oldest person to receive the honour.
