Item : 2021-034.431 - Wong - Daniel in uniform - 1940s

Collector/curator’s description reads: “Circa 1944/45, Vancouver. Photo of Daniel Wong (also known as Kwok Him Wong) was from Vancouver. He joined the Army in 1944 and started basic training in Maple Creek Saskatchewan. He was assigned the service number K.5554. Daniel was later trained as wireless operator and was slated to join Force 136 in India. When the war in Europe ended in May 1945, the Allies now turned all their attention to bringing an end to the war in the Pacific. They started to plan for an all-out assault on the home islands of Japan. They needed men to volunteer for what could be a suicide mission: the Japanese were expected to defend their homeland to the last man. The invasion was planned for November 1945. And, despite their fears, Daniel and Bing decided to put their names forward: they became members of the Canadian Army Pacific Force, sometimes referred to as the Tiger Force. Fortunately for Daniel, in August of 1945, the U.S. detonated two atomic bombs over Japan, which led to the surrender of the island nation. Back in Vancouver he worked in restaurants and then as a taxi driver and later a produce delivery-truck driver. While making a delivery to an IGA in Surrey just before Christmas, he died suddenly from a massive heart attack. He left behind 3 children and a wife.”