The Night Before

On the evening of 9 April 1945, a fierce battle still had to be fought. German troops had partially sabotaged the Cröddenbrug to block a crossing over the Overijssels Kanaal. Despite the damage and heavy German mortar fire, the Canadian troops managed to cross the bridge on foot and establish a foothold in the wooded area north of the Oerdijk. Engineers quickly began building a Bailey bridge to allow heavier equipment to cross in preparation for the final assault on Schalkhaar and Deventer.

The Advance

Shortly after midnight on 10 April, the exhausted Canadian platoons—among them Janicki’s B Company—advanced along the Oerdijk toward Schalkhaar. They had unusually precise knowledge of the German defensive positions, thanks in large part to resistance hero Jan Koster, who risked his life to deliver a detailed map of Deventer showing barricades, trenches, and minefields. Even so, they met fierce resistance.

Under continuous shelling, the Canadians advanced in short bursts, seeking cover along the way, until they reached Brinkgreven. There they sheltered in the woods before pushing on to liberate Deventer later that same day. The fighting claimed multiple casualties—Canadian, German, and civilian.

Memories of 10 April 1945

“We had to cross the fields with tanks and drive to the edge of the city. We lost one of our commanders there,” Janicki recalled during a 2023 visit to Deventer. This loss was a bitter blow for him, especially after his brother Dave had already been killed earlier in the war.

Still, Janicki remembered 10 April 1945 as a day of joy:

“We marched through the Lange Bisschopstraat. There were people everywhere—standing on the roofs or waving to us from their windows.”

“Pretty little blonde girl”

Among the people waving that day was Derthie Wolthuis. Janicki would later call her this pretty little blonde girl. They became friends in April 1945, but after the war Janicki returned to Canada, and Wolthuis resumed her life in Deventer.

Around the turn of the century, after becoming a widower, Janicki reconnected with Wolthuis. They married in 2002 and spent ten years together until Wolthuis’s passing in 2012.