November 11, 2022 6:00
Sarnia’s late Joeygan was like many Canadians of his generation. World War II meant that young people needed to volunteer to take up arms against the fascist threat of the Nazis. When Canada called, Joygan answered. He served on a naval ship in the Atlantic Ocean. The risk of death has become a daily reality as German U-Boats patrol the oceans, looking for merchant and naval vessels to fire torpedoes.
But Egan, unlike many of his comrades, understood that many of the German sailors who tried to kill him were not Nazis. Like him, many are patriotic people who respond to the call of the country. So when he was in charge of caring for captured U-Boat sailors, he treated them with kindness, dignity and respect. So much so that, years later, the captain of U-575 invited him to a crew meeting, which he traveled to Germany to attend.
This is his story.