Profile image
Military service
Service number:
B/117303
Age:
19
Rank:
Rifleman
Force:
Army
Unit/Regiment:
Regina Rifle Regiment
Birth:
December 30, 1924
Timmins, Ontario
Enlistment:
September 28, 1943
Toronto, Ontario
Death:
August 16, 1944
Burial/memorial information
Grave reference:
XXIV. A. 7.
Additional information
Son of Joseph and May Legassey, of Timmins, Ontario.
Brother of Marie May, Pauline, Gladys, Elmer and Marie Rose.
Digital gallery of Rifleman Vincent Joseph Legassey
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Grave marker
Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery, France -
Letter
The last letter that Vincent would ever pen. He would be killed just 12 days later by machine gun fire from enemy tanks in the Village of Versainville near Falaise, France. -
Newspaper clipping
Porcupine Advance, page 1, Thursday 12 October 1944 -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Photo taken at his home in Timmins, Ontario -
Group Photo
Vincent (on left) with best friend Armand Babin. Photo most likely taken at the Timmins Armoury. -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent as a youth. He was so much more than a soldier. He was a son, brother and fiancé. An uncle whom we would never meet nor be able to hug or kiss. Vincent, you once lived, breathed, loved and were loved. Your parents and siblings spoke of you often, keeping your spirit and divine essence alive which will forever enkindle our hearts. To this very day, the young grandchildren of your nieces and nephews bring a photograph of you to their schools on Remembrance Day and tell of your sacrifice. Vincent, tu étais un parfait enfant de Dieu. With love, Jenne, Pineault, Morin, and Legasy families -
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal
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Medal
France-Germany Star -
Letter
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Group Photo
Vincent: middle row, last one on right (wearing helmet) World War II photo of Army Platoon IATC (Infantry Advanced Training Centre) Camp Borden December 1943 No. 2 Coy R.C.A.S.C.T.C. (Royal Canadian Army Service Corps Training Centre) -
1939-45 Star
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Group Photo
Vincent with his fiancé, Thérèse Levasseur -
War Medal 1939-45
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Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Rifleman Vincent Joseph Legassey. He loved his family so much that he sacrificed his life for them. -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent your future was forged in the stars millennia before you were born -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent your precious life’s blood was shed on foreign soil so many miles away from the bosom of your family -
Memorial Cross
A memento of personal loss and sacrifice given to Vincent's mother -
Post Card
Upon arrival in England, Vincent immediately wrote to his mom and dad, and of course his “beloved”. In prior letters he had written to his parents, he expressed the hope in his heart that he would build a home and marry his fiancé. Every mile that Vincent travelled, ever hour that passed, would bring him closer to that fateful day in August. -
Reverse side of Memorial Cross
No medal can compensate for the loss of a child. -
Letter
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Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent, you grew up during the Great Depression. Falling on the heels of that was WWII -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent when your parents held you tight in their arms and gazed into your eyes, your future was unknown to them. Never, did they think they would lose you this way -
Journal
Vincent’s mother kept a small journal. With as much sorrow as that seen since Golgotha, she wrote: “my honey got killed in France August 16 1944. I will never forget you Vincent as long as I live. Hope to see you soon. I miss your letters so much and every one of us miss you so very very much. XX -
Journal
“I send you some pictures darling but they all came back. Oh why did it had to be you. Darling son I always think of you. Miss you so very much. 0ur life is so spoiled without you. XXXXXX Oh Vincent, Vincent, Vincent, Vincent, Vincent, Vincent I want you back. Oh god.” -
Biography
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Biography
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Grave marker
Close family friend Sharon C. paid homage to Vincent in June 2022 by visiting his grave at Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery and reverently placing a Canadian flag at his plot -
Cathedral St. Vincent, St. Malo, France
At the Cathedral Saint-Vincent in St. Malo, France, a candle was lit by close family friend Sharon C at the statue of the Blessed Virgin in memory of Vincent -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent at First Rock, Timmins, ON. -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Vincent at home on his embarkation leave May 1944. -
Class photo
École catholique St-Charles circa 1932. Vincent is seated in the second row (from the right), second student (from front). St Charles, 120 Kent Avenue, Timmins, ON was built in 1922 and by the 1930’s had 16 classrooms. The building was demolished in 2022 to make room for a new health centre. Vincent’s soul now finds its home of rest in communion with God. -
Photo of Vincent Joseph Legassey
Getting ready for Spring planting: Vincent turning the soil over in his parents vegetable garden May 1944
In the Books of Remembrance
Commemorated on:
Page 363 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance.
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BRETTEVILLE-SUR-LAIZE CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY Calvados, France
This cemetery lies on the west side of the main road from Caen to Falaise (route N158) and just north of the village of Cintheaux. Bretteville-sur-Laize is a village and commune in the department of the Calvados, some 16 kilometres south of Caen. The village of Bretteville lies 3 kilometres south-west of the Cemetery. Buried here are those who died during the later stages of the battle of Normandy, the capture of Caen and the thrust southwards (led initially by the 4th Canadian and 1st Polish Armoured Divisions), to close the Falaise Gap, and thus seal off the German divisions fighting desperately to escape being trapped west of the Seine. Almost every unit of Canadian 2nd Corps is represented in the Cemetery. There are about 3,000 allied forces casualties of the Second World War commemorated in this site.
For more information, visit Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
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