Anguish of War brings area war dead to life

By Mark Ribble

A book profiling about 1,300 Windsor-Essex County war dead is being launched today (Wednesday, November 2) in Windsor.

Reverend Gene Lotz is the man behind the book and he says the idea came to him in 1998.

Back then, Lotz was the chairperson of the committee to build a war memorial at Malden Park in Windsor and he was charged with the task of gathering all of the names of those killed in action in the two world wars and other wars along the way.

It was truly what you would call a monumental task.

“I got the legwork done back then,” says Lotz. “It was after the monument was finished that I started working toward publishing it.”

On the eve of the monument unveiling, Lotz made a trip down to Malden Park to have a look at the monument. It was there that he noticed a veteran standing near the monument in tears.

“It suddenly struck me that he was remembering his comrades and it was bringing him to tears,” says Lotz. “That’s when I decided that there are many stories to tell.”

What began as a name gathering expedition soon became a labour of love for the Windsor man whose father and fatherin-law were both veterans of the Second World War.

He saw it more than just a list of names. It was a list of lives lived and lost.

“There was once life there, experiences there and a face there,” he said. “It was important to find out who these people are that we remember each year.” And he did. Hours upon hours of research went into his work with the intention of eventually publishing profiles of these soldiers online on a website.

About seven years ago, Gene suffered a couple of heart attacks and decided then and there that it was time to get things moving.

“I thought I’d better get on it,” he says.

Encouraged by a fellow writer to turn his work into a book, Lotz enlisted the aid of Herb Colling, who edited the 1,500- page manuscript into 400 pages, over two volumes.

The finished product is called The Anguish of War and profiles soldiers who lost their lives in action starting with the Boer War and right up to and including Afghanistan.

Along the way, Lotz learned so much about the area’s history — stories that may not have otherwise been told — and he’s happy to share those with those who are interested in knowing about those 1,300 soldiers.

Among the soldiers profiled are Leamington ace pilot Harry Fenwick, whose own story of graduating from the high school here, becoming a standout baseball star, and getting several flying medals, is an often-told tale around this time of year. Fenwick was shot down by friendly fire over France in 1944.

Fenwick’s story is just one of many of the tales told about Kingsville, Leamington and Wheatley war dead.

“We read their names on Remembrance Day, but there’s more to it than that,” he said.

Lotz’s work will undoubtedly be of interest to family members of those whose names appear on the local cenotaphs throughout the region.

He’s recently received an invite to present his book at the Ontario Legislature in the near future.

He’s also holding a book signing this Saturday, November 5 at the Tecumseh Heritage Centre, which is located near the corner of Manning Road and Tecumseh Road. Lotz will be there to meet and greet those interested in the book, and the books are available for $40 from noon until 2 pm.

If you can’t make it out and want to get some more information, follow his Facebook page, The Anguish of War, where some of the soldier profiles have been posted. You can contact him through that page and arrange to get a book.

Reverend Gene Lotz at a recent speaking engagement. Photo by Andrea Grimes