100-year-old Ed Marshall, who was with the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion during WW2 but never saw action as he was still in training when the war ended, at the Sunnybrook Veteran’s Residence in Toronto on May 30.Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail
The organizer: Ed Marshall
The pitch: The 100 Year Jump
The cause: Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children
Ed Marshall hadn’t even turned 18 when he enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War.
He wanted to be a pilot but a mishap with an airplane left him grounded and he switched to the army. He started training as a paratrooper in 1945 and after six jumps he was deemed ready for action. The war ended just as he finished training and Mr. Marshall left the military for a career in the printing business, which included a seven-year apprenticeship at The Globe and Mail.
He never parachuted again, until now.
Mr. Marshall turned 100 last December and he felt it was finally time for another leap.
“I have always wanted a high jump and to enjoy the flight down under a parachute,” he said from Sunnybrook Veterans Centre in Toronto. “So far, it’s all been military and they’re all around 200 metres or about 600 feet. And they’re all low because they want to get you on the ground as fast as possible so you don’t get a lot of time to enjoy them.”
With the help of Canadian Armed Forces veteran paratrooper, Adam Winnicki, Mr. Marshall will make his first jump in nearly 80 years on June 13 at Cayuga, Ont., outside Hamilton. The pair will fly up to an altitude of 3,810 metres before free falling and parachuting back to the ground.
“People might think that’s a bit too much for someone my age,” Mr. Marshall said. He added with a chuckle; “I’ve only got about 10 years or so left of my life to do this.”
The event has been called the 100 Year Jump and Mr. Marshall is hoping to raise $100,000 – $1,000 for each year of his life – for Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children. “The older I get the more I dote over babies and young kids,” he said. “I just want to help them if I have seen something wrong.”
His grandson, Bailey Fullan, has helped organize the fundraising jump. He made the connection with Mr. Winnicki through friends, and the day will also include a jump by the Canadian Forces Parachute Demonstration Team called the SkyHawks.
“He’s talked about this for years and years,” Mr. Fullan said of his grandfather. “So we’re super excited.”
Mr. Marshall is excited too but he probably won’t try another jump any time soon. “People think I’m nuts for doing this one,” he said. “So, if I do any more they’ll say ‘Well, he really is crazy.’ ”