Jean Parsons, Robert Wesley Best and Tom Henderson may not be written up in our history books as war heroes but their contributions to the Canadian war effort during World War II were heroic in their own way. Originally from different parts of the country, they now live as neighbours at the Chartwell retirement home in Oakville, Ont.

JEAN PARSONS: on the assembly line

Jean Parsons lived in Fredericton, NB and was 19, working at a pharmacy, when she first got the notion to make a contribution to her country. Her older brother had been shipped overseas to serve in the Navy, and at the time it all seemed glamorous.

"It was the thing to do at the time. All my friends and I wanted to do something in some way," she recalled. She originally was going to sign up with the Air Force but had a change of heart, worried how it would affect her parents. Parsons soon realized she could still make a contribution in a different way.

"My aunt and her husband lived in Nova Scotia where my uncle worked at a factory where they repaired airplanes. They were looking for people to help out. It was an adventure to be able to do something a girl wouldn't normally do."

Parsons took the job and from 1942 to 1944 she wired and soldered the insides of fighter planes. "It was an exciting time. We were young, away from home and able to do something more. You didn't realize until later how serious the war really was."

Parsons, 83, smiles as she recalls the good times she had working at the factory. "The morale was high and everyone struck up friendships. I met so many people from all over Canada."

Parsons went on to raise four children with her husband and at age 47 she went to work for a clothing store. She now has six grandchildren.

Today she says, "We are so lucky to be Canadian. Especially seniors. There is no place I'd rather be. To be young here too - there are so many opportunities to do what you want."

WESLEY BEST: five lonely years

Best, now 88, was living in Bancroft, Ont. and married in his early 20s before he trained to get his diesel engineer license in London, Ont. He joined the army and before long he was shipped overseas where he served from 1941 to 1946 as a private. Best spent time in the Netherlands, France, Belgium and finally England - five years without seeing his wife - before he was happily reunited with her.

And so Best recalls the loneliness the most - he went through a lot of emotionally challenging times throughout his term of service. When he left his wife she was pregnant and she eventually had to give birth without him. Then, sadly, the child passed away several months later. Best recalls how unfair it all seemed that he was not able to get away to properly mourn with his family.

Then there was tragedy on the battlefield. One rainy day in Belgium, he observed an American tank making its way down a cobblestone road. Suddenly a hail of gunfire struck the tank, causing it to hit a tree. One of the soldiers in the tank was pinned inside and Best and his mates did their best to assist but the gunfire kept them at bay. The soldier died right in front of them.

In spite of all this, Best says, "It was worth it. I did what I had to do. It helped me learn a lot about people." Most of all he learned how much he loved his wife. He finally returned to Canada in December of 1946, had two beautiful children with his wife and drove for Texaco. He now has five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

TOM HENDERSON: Germans were dignified

Tom Henderson, now 84, served in the Air Force for 28 months from 1942 to 1944. He was a few days shy of 19 when he signed up.

"A lot of my friends were doing the same thing (signing up). School was not for me, I was glad to finish it."

His service would take him to Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa and Halifax. "You got to see the country pretty well! I ended up serving most of my time in St. John's, Nfld. at the Torbay airport, where I worked on the ground floor in communications making flight plans and sending or receiving messages, sometimes in code."

He remembers well receiving one welcome message. It was near the end of the war and the morale was high with victory imminent. Henderson received word that a German submarine was about to be captured in the harbour at St John's and so he and his colleages raced down to witness the event. What struck him the most was how much pride the Germans had even though they had been defeated.

"They stood at full attention, lined up perfectly in their neat uniforms and you would never realize from the look on their faces they had lost."

Henderson says that when the war ended he had a harder time adjusting back into civilian life than he had fitting into the service. "In a way I was sorry it was over - you felt like you had a purpose. Some had rough times but I never talked to anyone who was sorry they served."

He worked as graphic artist after the war and remained in that position for over 50 years. He has two children and three grandchildren.