Bermudians, including Harold Evans, became part of the emergency preparation by joining Bermudian territorial (volunteer) military units.

On that fateful Sunday of September 3, 1939, mobilisation of all units took place. Harold had joined the Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps and was placed in C Company. The Company, commanded by Captain Rowland Robinson, took up positions in the Western Sector, with headquarters on Boaz Island. The Bermuda Command was worried about the potential threat of sabotage to shipping and installations in Dockyard.

Most Bermudians had family members who had served in World War I, so we had, at least, some feeling for what we were getting into. Harold's father had served in the Merchant Navy in First World War and took part in the pivotal naval Battle of Jutland in 1916.

With pre-war experience in catering for larger numbers, it was appropriate that Harold's first wartime job was assisting in the preparation of food and meals for the troops. Three times daily the Company cooks provided the bugler with good reason to blow perhaps the most popular of all his calls: "Come to the cookhouse door, boys!'' We all knew that eventually our services would be more urgently required overseas than at home. There would be calls for volunteers. Like many of us, Harold had decided, if called upon, he would volunteer with his ultimate goal to become a pilot in the Royal Air Force.

In the meantime, an announcement on the Company notice board stated additional clerks were needed at the Command Pay Office to assist with payment of increased local personnel. Deciding he needed a change, Harold applied and was accepted. He joined Norman Sumpter, also of the BVRC, who had been attached to the Pay Office a short time previously.

Thanks to donations by patriotic civilians, the Bermuda Flying School began training at Darrell's Island. Harold enrolled, bringing his ambition to become a pilot a step closer.

Harold Evans and Musson Wainwright finally received permission in August, 1941 to leave for England and the RAF.

Once there, however, Harold was in store for one of the greatest disappointments of his life. His qualifications fell just short of those needed for air crew training.

Now he had to consider various ground crew options and decided to become an armourer. His job was to service guns and bombs for fighters and bombers at aerodromes. He joined Number 247, a squadron of Tornado fighter-bombers.

Let nobody under-estimate the extreme danger ground crews faced. They were bombed and strafed regularly. Casualties sometimes were heavy.

Crossing the Channel in barges, Squadron 247's ground crew landed in Normandy on June 11, 1944, five days after D-Day.

The squadron advanced with the Allies through France, Belgium and Holland and on into Germany. Postings to Scandinavia and the Baltic Region preceded their return to England.

Then it was on to Scotland to prepare for the Far East. The fighters were exchanging their engines for the recently developed jet engines. But before they could leave for the Pacific Theatre, the atomic bombs fell on Japan and the Second World War was over.

Harold returned home via the Queen Elizabeth to New York and then to Bermuda by flying boat.

He resumed his position as Assistant Manager and Purchasing Agent at Cambridge Beaches, remaining there until 1958 when he left to go into the restaurant business in partnership with his brother, Stanley.

In the meantime, Harold had met Eleanor (Ellie) Richardson of Hartford, Connecticut, who had served in the US Women's Auxiliary Corps in the Second World War, when she was vacationing at Campbell Corner Guest House in Salt Kettle, which was operated by Harold's parents. The romance blossomed immediately. They were married on September 10, 1949. The couple built their first (and only) home in Sandys Parish overlooking Cavello Bay and the Great Sound. They called it "Pen-Bryn' (Welsh for `brow of a hill') and lived there for most of their 45 years together. It also became a base for a successful tourist guest house business that expanded to include Beacon and Vaello Cottages.

The brothers' first restaurant was The Tea Cosy, later to become the Longtail Restaurant & Bar, and finally Burnaby's. They added the gourmet Penthouse Restaurant, the 21-Club (now Ye Olde Cock & Feather), Le Petit Cafe' and the Hofbrau, featuring German food.

They catered many prestigious events and provided lunches for the tourist cruises to Hawkins Island.

Continued on page 20 Obituary -- Harold Evans, 1917 to 2000 Continued from page 18 Harold retired in 1988 at the age of 71.

He enjoyed hobbies. His favourite was his acre-sized garden, which he tended with dedicated affection. Daily walks with his dog brought him into contact with his neighbourhood friends.

Harold was an enthusiastic sailor and a member of the Bermuda Offshore Cruising Association, racing his sailboat Little Caesar and his yacht Seabird . Harold and Eleanor played golf regularly at Riddle's Bay Gold Club.

Travel was one of their most enjoyable highlights for Harold and Ellie.

Extended itineraries took them to the United States, Canada, Hawaii, England, Europe, Scandinavia, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.

Harold was born in Preston, England on November 22, 1917, one of four children of Sidney and Eleanor (Hobson) Evans. The others were sisters Patricia and Dorothy and brother Stanley. The family emigrated from England to Bermuda in 1933 when Sidney was appointed Chief Steward on the maiden voyage of the Queen of Bermuda .

Harold was a freemason and member of the Atlantic Phoenix Lodge Number 224. He attended Christ Church, Warwick, and was a member of the BVRC Overseas Association and the Bermuda War Veterans Association.

Harold Evans passed away on November 29, 2000. He is survived by his son Richard and daughter Sharonlee of Bermuda; and by his sisters, Patricia Dornhorst of Fairfield, Ohio, USA, and Dorothy Coquillon of Bermuda, and their families.

Sharonlee and Richard composed, and Richard delivered, the moving eulogy at their father's funeral at Christ Church, Warwick on December 3, 2000. Their concluding words were: "Harold, we will miss you as we treasure our memories of a life well lived. God bless and God speed you to Ellie's waiting arms.'' Harold's sister, Dorothy, provides an equally moving postscript to this tribute and memory of a beloved and respected comrade and friend: "My brother was always so friendly and cheerful, and had a good sense of humour. In these latter years after his wife, Eleanor, passed away, we enjoyed going out to lunch and talking about old times, and the incredible changes that had taken place in our lifetime. Being the older brother, he was always there to help our Mother, and also his siblings in time of need. I miss him very much and he will always remain in my thoughts.'' Contributed by Tommy Aitchison