Agnes and John McBrien sent boots to their son Russel McBrien, a stretcher-bearer and trombone player in the 2nd Battalion. In his letters home Russel didn’t often speak of his day-to-day life at war, but his parents did know he needed boots to trudge through the muddy and mice-infested trenches. But he never did receive the boots.

“When they found out he was killed they wanted the boots back. They wondered who got them,” said Rod Heikkila, Russel’s great nephew.

Russel died on November 6, 1917 at Passchendaele. The cause of his death remains unknown and his body wasn’t recovered until many years later.

“No information regarding the grave of your late son is available, but should any particulars be received at some future date, they will be forwarded to you immediately," read at least three letters military officials sent to Agnes between 1918-20.

“His mother never recovered from the news of his death. She had a lot of mental health issues,” said Heikkila.

Russel’s body was eventually found and now he’s buried at Passchendale New British Cemetery in Belgium.

Russel was born on March 29, 1893 in Uxbridge, Ontario. He worked as a metal polisher and was athletic.

He was living in Orillia, Ontario when he enlisted on June 11, 1915.

Do you have an ancestor who served in the Great War? Submit their story and it could be included on this Great War Album website.