If you look closely next time you pick up your mail, you will notice two antique photographs behind the counter. These two survived the First World War and made a home in Drumheller.
The two are husband and wife, Fitzwilliam Hill and Annie Olive Hill. They are Mike Brown’s grandparents.
Brown tells the Mail how his grandfather Fitzwilliam was born in England but homesteaded near Hanna. He was one of eight children, and all seven brothers served in the military at some point in their lives. When the First World War broke out, he enlisted. It wasn’t as easy as going to the local office and signing up. He walked to Stettler to join up.
“My grandfather signed up for the Canadian military and went overseas to fight,” Brown tells the Mail.
He served as a stretcher-bearer and served in the horrific trenches of World War I. When soldiers were wounded, they had to wait for the stretcher-bearers and hope they would find them. It was a treacherous job.
“He served in the trenches and faced mustard gas they thought he was dead on a couple of occasions,” said Brown.
During his time in the military, tragedy struck at home as his first wife passed away.
Fitzwilliam was wounded while serving. He was shot through both feet.
While recovering in England, he met an English nurse in the hospital, and the two were married.
Eventually, they made their way back to Canada and then Drumheller.
“After the war, when they moved back he worked all over the place. He worked in every province in Canada, and then he settled in Drumheller,” said Brown.
Brown has fond memories of his grandparents, especially his grandmother’s cooking.
‘She was a good cook, those nurses didn’t just tend to the wounded, they did a bit everything,” he said.
He also remembers the scars on his grandfather’s feet and his stories. He has a photo of his grandfather at 70 walking on stilts.
Fitzwilliam and Annie Olive are both buried at the Drumheller cemetery.
Brown feels it is important to honour the memory of his grandfather and all that served for Canada. He recently discovered these photos and felt it was important to display them.

Carbon Mayor Bryan Peever served his country for more than 35 years in the Canadian Forces and has served his community in the capacity of both Deputy Mayor and Mayor since he was elected to council in 2017.
His career in the military started at the age of 18.
“I grew up in a small town in Northern Ontario, population about 50,” Mayor Peever told the Mail. “My options in the late 70s were mining or forestry. Being a young lad, I packed my bags and thought the military might be fun. The rest is history.”
After enrollment, he was sent for basic training in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia followed by a posting to Kingston, Ontario for his trades training.
During his military career, Mayor Peever was posted in communities across Canada including several bases in Ontario, Inuvik in the Northwest Territories, and he even spent time in Comox and Haida Gwaii on the west coast of British Columbia.
“I always said when I got out of the military I would get involved,” he said. “In the military you’re not allowed to get involved in communities; you can’t run for council and, as a rule, I never voted in community, council, or municipal elections because I was never going to be there long enough.”
Although he never got involved with local politics, Mayor Peever noted he always voted in federal elections.
The majority of his military career was spent during the Cold War with Russia, though Mayor Peever never served overseas.
“When the Afghan War started (in 2001), I was a Warrant Officer at Kingston at the regiment,” Mayor Peever said. He noted there were many at the same rank lining up for deployment and, later on in the war the availability of positions overseas for his rank were “slim” and there were “people lined up for years.”
His last post, prior to his retirement, was at the National Defense Headquarters in Ottawa as Chief Warrant Officer where he oversaw more than 1,000 individuals.
Now retired from the military, Mayor Peever settled in the quiet village in the valley. Most residents in Carbon are unaware of Mayor Peever’s service to his country; he says, “I’m not one to wave my flag.”
In 2017 he ran for a seat on council and was elected as Deputy Mayor.
Since then, he has moved to the role of Mayor during an organizational meeting, and he now oversees a council of five and some 500 residents. He says the leadership skills instilled from his time in the military have benefited him daily, both as a member of council and in dealing with people.
Mayor Peever was the first in his family to join the military, though he is not the last. His daughter followed in her father’s footsteps and served for a total of five years.