Waterloo Region Generations
A record of the people of Waterloo Region, Ontario.

Dr. Eric Albert Willis, Major

Male 1916 - 1945  (29 years)


Personal Information    |    Media    |    Notes    |    Sources    |    Event Map    |    All    |    PDF

  • Name Eric Albert Willis 
    Prefix Dr. 
    Suffix Major 
    Born 10 Apr 1916  Seeley's Bay, Leeds and Grenville, Ontario, Canada Find all individuals with events at this location  [1
    Gender Male 
    FindAGrave https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12905415 
    Eby ID Number Waterloo-141496 
    Died 3 May 1945  Bedburg, , Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany Find all individuals with events at this location  [1
    Buried Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, Nijmegen, , Gelderland, Netherlands Find all individuals with events at this location  [1
    Person ID I141496  Generations
    Last Modified 6 Apr 2024 

    Father Wellington Willis,   b. CA 1885, of, Seeley's Bay, , Ontario Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Yes, date unknown 
    Mother Marion Cockrill,   b. CA 1885, of, Seeley's Bay, , Ontario Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Yes, date unknown 
    Family ID F52949  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Mary Mildred "Mildred" Forler,   b. 1917, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1 Oct 1983, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 66 years) 
    Married 24 Feb 1941 
    Last Modified 7 Apr 2024 
    Family ID F52948  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Photos
    Dr. Major Eric Albert Willis
    Dr. Major Eric Albert Willis
    Kitchener Public Library

  • Notes 
    • MAJOR ERIC WILLIS

      Major Eric Albert Willis, 28- year-old doctor who received the Montgomery Award for gallantry in January of this year, gave his life in service, his wife has been informed.

      Mrs. Willis is the former Mildred Forler, 60 College St., Apt. A., who graduated from the K-W Hospital, where Major Willis served as in- tern. They were married in Kitch ener on Feb. 24, 1941.

      The young doctor was born at Seeley's Bay to Mr. and Mrs. Welington Willis. He enlisted in June, 1940, as a lieutenant with the 23rd Field Ambulance and went overseas in August, 1941, proceeding to France on D-day. Promotion to the rank of major came in November, 1944.

      He trained with the C.O.T.C. at Queen's University, Kingston, where he graduated with a medical degree in May, 1940. His earlier education was received at Seeley's Bay.

      His sister, Dorothy, is a nursing sister in the United States Air Force and a brother, Delmer, is serving in the navy.

      Other survivors in addition to his parents, are two sisters, Mrs. Stuart Willoughby and Eleanor.

      Kitchener Daily Record 09 Mar 1945, Fri Page 3

      ______________

      Major Willis Dies in Action, Wife Informed

      Today's heavy list of casualties fo cludes two Twin City and three die triet men who have given their lives in service and six local and district men reported wounded.

      Two men have been wounded second time, and one is a casualty a the third time.

      Secondary telegrams have been received concerning men previously reported wounded.

      The casualties are:

      KILLED

      Major Eric Albert Willis, 2, husband of the former Mildred Forler, 60 College St, Apt. A.

      Kitchener Daily Record 09 Mar 1945, Fri Page 3


      _____________

      MAJOR ERIC ALBERT WILLIS, Med. '40, of the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, was killed in action in Germany early in March. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Wellington Willis of Seeley's Bay, Ont., and was educated in the public and continuation schools of the village before entering Medicine at Queen's. After graduating in 1940 he interned at the General Hospital in Kitchener, Ont., and then enlisted in the R.C.A.M.C. He went overseas in 1941 with the 23rd Field Ambulance. In January of this year he won the Montgomery Award for gallantry. Besides his parents he is survived by his wife, one brother and three sisters.

      The Queen's Review, 1945, p. 77

      ______________


  • Sources 
    1. [S1372] Canadian Virtual War Memorial, Eric Albert Willis - The Canadian Virtual War Memorial - Veterans Affairs Canada. (2016). Veterans.gc.ca. Retrieved 22 December 2016, from https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/2233048.

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 10 Apr 1916 - Seeley's Bay, Leeds and Grenville, Ontario, Canada Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDied - 3 May 1945 - Bedburg, , Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsBuried - - Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, Nijmegen, , Gelderland, Netherlands Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth