Group Captain Leonard Cheshire.Group Captain Leonard Cheshire, the British wartime ace fighter pilot and later philanthropist, may become the first pilot to be beatified – 100 years after his birth in Cheshire, though he lived for many years in Oxford. He would thus be the first pilot to be declared Blessed, and may well may become patron of pilots.
I first met him at a Cheshire Home for the Disabled, which he had started some years after the war to care for disabled people throughout the world, especially servicemen.
In 1973, I invited him to Malta on behalf of the Cana Movement. He came with his frail, diminutive and saintly wife, Sue Ryder, who shared with him his post-war philanthropic mission. They loved Malta and were interested to know if we had any disabled former RAF pilots, in which case he would open a home for them. Today, the number of Cheshire Homes for disabled, sick or lonely people, preferably former servicemen, is close to 100.
Younger generations do not know who this pilot was. He was part of the courageous Dambusters, who was awarded numerous decorations, including the Victoria Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Military Cross for his heroic flights to defeat the evil of Nazi Germany and also Japan.
He remains the most decorated RAF pilot and the one who gave former RAF servicemen dignity, independence and health. Each home he set up was a small cottage provided with doctors, nurses and volunteers of various denominations. Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, when opening a Cheshire Home for Indian servicemen, described Leonard as the greatest man since Gandhi. He called him a hero, a revolutionary, an inspiration to others and a deeply spiritual person. Like Mother Teresa, Leonard saw, felt and helped all those in need.
The son of a baron (he himself was made a Life Peer in 1991), he graduated as a lawyer in 1939. He joined the RAF soon after graduation and became famous for his bombing runs on Germany; he was the British observer when the atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Nagasaki, killing thousands. He himself did not take part in the bombing but the immense destruction of human life left him with an uneasy conscience.
This event brought him to the Catholic Church and soon he became known not only for his mission but also for his humility, simplicity and love for the poor. Who would have thought he was the most decorated pilot of the war? He rarely spoke about the 100 flight operations with the Dambusters Squadron as a group captain.
After witnessing so much inhumanity and sacrifice in the war, which left him with a deep spiritual scar, Leonard started by campaigning for better treatment of ex-servicemen. True to his word, in 1948, he opened the door of his home to welcome an airman, Arthur Dykes, who had terminal cancer. He cared from him with love. Just before he died, Dykes begged Leonard: “If somebody else comes along, whoever it might be, don’t turn him away. Please take him in.”
His foundation, Leonard Cheshire Disability, helps more than 6,700 disabled and sick people every year in the UK and another 1,000 in Africa, Asia, the US and India. He died on July 31, 1992.
Today, 100 years after Leonard was born, his legacy of love for the sick is still kept alive. Any donations may be sent to Neil Heslop, OBE, at supporter@leonardcheshire.org.