First of all, I would like to thank you for forwarding my letter to Astrida Reader. I have since heard from Astrida, and was delighted to renew our acquaintance, and to get news of her family. And in your June issue, "Newfoundlanders and the War of 1812," by Ron Young, was proof for my two granddaughters that one of their great-grandfathers, Captain John Whelan, was "responsible for holding Fort Erie against attack by the Americans in their second major attempt to cross the Niagara at Frenchman's Creek" and I will buy the book! A friend and I have plans to visit Corner Brook and the St. John's area in August, and if things go as planned, I will get the book then. Donna (Whalen) Brooks P.S. Half my siblings were christened Whalen, the other half Whelan. P.S.S. I do appreciate Ed Smith's humour! And certainly your recipes. P.S.S.S. More about my branch of the Whalens/Whelans: Apparently, three boatloads of the Whalens left Brigus in 1849 and "followed the fish" to Flower's Cove - where many descendants (of them) still are. My own grandfather was a John Whalen too. My father, Caleb Whalen, was a sailor in WW I. My brother and I joined the Navy in WW II (He a sailor, I a WREN). My father moved with his family (Mary Jane Lawless - wife - and four children) to Montreal in 1929, and there we went to school until 1938, when we found ourselves back in Newfoundland (Corner Brook this time). We attended Corner Brook Public School up to 1943, then once again we moved back to Montreal, where we stayed. I moved to Ontario (Milton) in 1981, and here I am still, hoping to make a trip back on Aug. 16th with a schoolgirl friend - Alma Winsor. I have been back frequently in the last 30 years (I did the Come Home Year in 2010), but Alma wants to go so badly that I do hope we can make it! Wish us luck!   Submitted By: NULL