Bill Pennington marched to the beat of his own drummer.

The analogy of the drummer isn't far from the truth for Pennington, who signed up with the British Army as a 14-year-old bugle boy in 1934. After training, Pennington found himself posted to India.

Unknown to him at the time, he was witness to the last days of the Indian Raj. His service in India was cut short with the start of the Second World War.

He found himself fighting in France and was one of the 340,000 troops rescued off the beaches of Dunkirk.

After officer training, Pennington rose to the rank of captain and was assigned as a forward observation officer for the Royal Horse Artillery.

He returned to India and fought there and in the Burma campaign.

For his exploits, he was awarded the Military Cross, the second-highest medal for heroism in the British Empire.

"He was especially proud of the regiment's motto: First to battle, last to leave," recalls his wife Enid, who met the dashing young man at a dance in 1946 in England.

"He kept in touch with his comrades, founding the local branch of the Burma Star Association."

The couple emigrated to Canada in 1951, where Pennington started working in the hospital industry.

Upon arrival in Canada, the former army officer got a job as the laundry manager at a London, Ont., hospital. He started taking night and correspondence courses and eventually rose to the position of administrative assistant.

The couple remained in London until 1964 when they moved to Saskatoon.

After a three-year stint there, the couple moved to Victoria, where they began their family — a son Richard and a daughter Susan.

Pennington was one of the architects of the Hospital Ambulance Service, which eventually became the B.C. Ambulance Service.

He joined the department of hospital planning and was responsible for the design of a number of facilities including the Victoria General Hospital and the Saanich Peninsula Hospital. He retired in 1990.

Pennington had the travel bug throughout his life, and together with Enid, the couple visited more than 23 countries over the years.

She says he particularly liked India and got the sense he would have liked to return more often.

He did do one trip on his own, however.

He had read about going around the world on $5 a day and was determined to see if it was possible. He embarked on this adventure in 1983.

"It was one trip that didn't sound inviting," says Enid. "The places he stayed at weren't on any travel guide."

After he retired, he surprised his family by writing a book.

"My father was a very private person," says his son Richard Pennington.

"So it came as a surprise to the whole family when he announced, at 80, that he had written an autobiography."

Pennington had taken three years to put thought to paper with Enid serving as proofreader and editor.

Pennington's book was picked up by a publisher in the United Kingdom and a hardcover version was printed in 2003. It was subsequently printed as a soft-cover.

The book, Pick Up Your Parrots and Monkeys is a vivid coming-of-age story of his time in the horse artillery, army life in the 1930s and the Burma campaign during the Second World War.

He describes his experience as a witness to the relationship between the British and the Indians and recounts the brutality of the China-Burma-India theatre of war.

The book was chosen as the Daily Mail's book of the month. It is still in circulation.

"The editor told us he picked up the book to read because of the unusual title," says Enid.

The title Pick Up Your Parrots and Monkeys refers to a traditional muster call by a sergeant major to his troops waiting on the docks to board a ship back to England.

The young men would frequently adopt a young pet to ward off the loneliness of being away from home, and although the practice was not condoned, it was tolerated.

Richard remembers his dad as a person who would take him fishing and spend the summers in Parksville. He also credits his father with infecting him with the travel bug.

"I crossed the Atlantic six times before I was four years old," he says.

"I have visited over 40 countries by now."

From bugle boy to author, Bill Pennington lived and wrote about a full and adventuresome life.

parrais@timescolonist.com

Joseph William Pennington was born April 20, 1920, in Salford, Lancashire, England. He died Sept. 30, 2011, in Sidney.

Island Lives is a series celebrating the lives of Island people who have died recently. The series focuses not on the famous, but on our neighbours who have led interesting lives or made a difference in their communities. If you know of someone whose life should be celebrated, let us know by email at features@timescolonist.com or by mail at 2621 Douglas St., Victoria, B.C., V8T 4M2.