WWII vet dies aged 102
Jack Martin passed away on December 19, 2017 at the age of 102, being one of a few of the oldest surviving soldiers from World War II in New Zealand.
Jack had quite a collection of medals — the Defence Medal (UK) 1939-1945; the Star 1939-1945; the New Zealand War Medal; the African Star and the New Zealand War Service Medal.
In 1995, he was awarded life membership of the RSA by Dominion president David Cox.
Then a year later he was awarded a certificate of appreciation from then Prime Minister Helen Clark and a Merit Badge and certificate from the RSA.
Known as Gentleman Jack, he was president of the Pahiatua RSA from 1972 to 1976.
It is recorded that he always carried out his duties with dignity and had been a regular and conscientious delegate to district and dominion conferences over the years.
His name is on the national honours list in which the New Zealand RSA records its appreciation of individuals’ unselfish devotion to the interests of other ex-servicemen and women.
Until his 100th birthday, Jack hadn’t missed a Dawn Parade since 1958.
His service included action at Tobruk with the Royal Engineers. Sapper Jack Martin joined the war effort on May 1, 1940, in the second echelon. When he got to Fremantle, Australia, he learned Mussolini had joined the war and the Suez Canal was closed. Then it was on to Durban and Cape Town before his ship steamed out into the Atlantic Ocean.
“I didn’t know where we were going,” said Jack.
He landed in Glasgow “with a destroyer convoy escort cutting the water like butter”.
After meeting an uncle in Blackpool, he regrouped in Glasgow aboard the Franconia, which had been torpedoed in World War I and repaired.
With 112 ships in convoy, they passed the White Cliffs of Dover, where Jack saw the RAF shoot down 152 German aircraft.
In the Middle East, he built fortifications at Bagoush as part of the 10th Railway Company.
As Rommel advanced toward Tobruk, Jack was involved in building an anti-tank trench to stop him. He came under attack from German bombers returning from a mission which swooped down and unloaded any shells they had left on his position where he took shelter behind a sand bag and survived the attack. Jack was then moved on to look after Libyan and Italian POWs.
He went on to the Sinai, Palestine and Israel, Lebanon and Syria. After four years’ service he camped beside the pyramids in Egypt, before returning to New Zealand.