Polish Second World War hero and Alberta propane pioneer’s life honoured
By Bill Kaufmann ,Calgary Sun
That life was celebrated last Friday on what would have been Harald Krusche’s 105th birthday by nearly 200 people who gathered at Calgary’s Glencoe Club after his death in January.
His daughter Anna described how her cavalry officer father helped resist Hitler’s invasion of Poland that started the Second World War in Europe.
“He was in charge of 120 horses [s/b ~120 men 400 horses A.K.]... he took down an artillery piece,” said Anna.
Harald, she said, was with Poland’s top general when word came the Soviets had also invaded his homeland, setting the stage for years of flight and exile from both the Nazis and Communists.
Unable to escape the German conquerors, he spent most of the war in a Third Reich prison camp, organizing attempted escapes that kept his captors busy, said son Jack Krusche.
“It was their job to keep the Germans occupied, to keep their soldiers from the front,” he said.
When his father escaped captivity as the Soviet Army approached, he eventually made his way to Denmark, where he and friends executed a daring escape by small boat to neutral Sweden, under Gestapo noses.
At one point, the men wore stolen German uniforms supplied by the Danish underground to mingle with unsuspecting Gestapo men, said Jack.
He came back to mainland Europe to assist the Red Cross in aiding survivors of the Bergen Belsen concentration camp.
Unable to return to his native Poland under Communist control, Krusche made his way to Alberta, where he brought into production the first propane plant in Canada, at Turner Valley just south of Calgary.
He was even instrumental in making arena ice cleaners healthier to operate around indoor crowds, said his son.
“He came to Canada in 1949 with nothing and made a very interesting life,” said Jack.
“He always said this was the best place to be.”
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