Lincoln & Welland Regiment Grouping – Pte. John M. Bendera

Original WWII Lincoln & Welland Regiment grouping, belonging to Private John Michael Bendera, with service number B-602294. Private Bendera served with The Lincoln & Welland Regiment, 4th Canadian Armoured Division during the Second World War. This very complete grouping contains a large selection of Bendera’s original wartime personal effects, including his Canadian Army beret with Lincoln & Welland Regiment cap badge, identity discs (dog tags), his medals, two Canadian Army Soldier’s Service and Pay Books with their leather holder, a canvas personal effects bag, his original Canadian Army identification card with photograph, discharge certificate, Canadian ration books, a military German Phrase Book dated November 30, 1943, wartime photographs, Veterans Affairs correspondence and various other documents and papers. Particularly interesting is Bendera’s post-war Firearms Registration Certificate, issued in 1956, relating to a firearm retained as a souvenir. Altogether, this is a highly personal grouping that has preserved many of the documents and possessions associated with one individual Canadian soldier.

Private John Michael Bendera was born in Toronto, Ontario, on April 13, 1917. Before entering military service, his civilian occupation was recorded as an assembler. He enlisted in the Canadian Army at Toronto on May 15, 1942, and served as a Private. His wartime identification card records him as Infantry and describes him as 5 feet 6 inches tall, with brown hair and blue eyes. Bendera served in Canada, the United Kingdom and Western Europe, including service with The Lincoln & Welland Regiment of the 4th Canadian Armoured Division. His surviving discharge papers record the France and Germany Star, reflecting qualifying service in North-West Europe. Following the end of the war in Europe, Bendera returned to Canada and was discharged on March 6, 1946, with the official reason given as “to return to civil life on demobilization.” He was 28 years and 11 months old at the time of his discharge.