Paxton Man to be Awarded White Rose of Finland
PAXTON, MA — Harold Riddar, 93, of Paxton is to be awarded the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland on September 29, recognizing his honorable service in the Finnish Army during the Continuation War with Russia in the early 1940s. Sauli Niinistö, President of the Republic of Finland, decided to bestow the war veteran insignia upon Riddar this year specifically, with 2017 marking 100 years of Finnish independence from Russia.
Kirsti Kauppi, Ambassador of Finland to the United States, reached out to Riddar with an official mail notice in June of this year to inform him of his upcoming award. Finnish Consul General Manu Virtamo will present the medal in a ceremony held at the Ambassador’s residence in New York City.
Riddar grew up in Tjärlax, Närpes, Finland on a small farm that supported several cows, sheep, a horse, a pig, and barley and wheat. He was enrolled in school until the age of 12, at which time his father asked him to stay home and help on the farm. As he grew older and stronger, Riddar had more job prospects. At 14, he began working as a longshoreman on the Gulf of Bothnia shoveling coal. Then, on March 9, 1940, he was drafted into the Finnish Army.
The year prior, Russia had invaded Finland seeking claim to parts of Finnish land — prompting the Winter War — and Finland lost one eleventh of its national territory and approximately 13% of its economic capacity. On June 25, 1941, the Continuation War began, with Finland fighting to protect its remaining territory from Russia, and seeking to take its territory back that had been lost during the Winter War.
Riddar vividly remembers appearing at the railroad station near his hometown and saying goodbye to his girlfriend at the time, who he would never see again. He and other men — all Swedish-speaking Finns — piled into cattle cars and were transported to Dragsvik, Finland, where they trained. Riddar was an exceptional recruit, and was given specialized advanced marksman training with 15 other men. Following his time in Dragsvik, he moved on to Jessoila, where Riddar says he “met winter.” From there, he went on to battle on the Karelian front on the Soviet-Finnish border by Lake Onega in the 2nd Battalion, 4th Company.
Riddar recalls that at one point in his service, he did not once remove his boots through nine months of intense fighting. Biting cold and having to quickly escape Russian bullets and artillery would not allow him the option of removing his footwear. Russian sources reported that it was so cold at the front that some infantrymen were found frozen to death in a standing position. Riddar served on the front lines in Karelia until the war ended in 1944. Of the many young men from his village called to serve the Republic of Finland, Riddar was one of the few who returned from the front. To this day, he can still hear the young runner who came to his camp at 5:00am announcing a ceasefire to begin in at 6:00am. Though all territory was not regained, Finland, as a small democratic nation — a David that stood up to a Goliath — defended its independence and retained its national sovereignty.
Riddar immigrated to America in 1947 and joined the United States Army. Shortly after, he married Margit Anderson Riddar. He started building a life in Worcester County. He enrolled in Worcester Junior College, and upon passing his high school equivalency exam, he embarked on an education at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he studied for 5 years. Upon graduation, he worked as a draftsman at Riley Stoker — now Babcock Power, Inc. — and rose up the ranks as a principal engineer and Manager of Design Graphics. He and his wife were blessed with three children who they raised in Paxton. Riddar now proudly has four grandchildren and a great-grandchild on the way.
Riddar — who still resides in Paxton — is greatly humbled and deeply honored to receive the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland, acknowledging his service after all these years.
Paxton: Harold O. Riddar, 93 passed away peacefully on Friday, October 6, 2017 in Cape Cod Hospital. He leaves two sons- Karl H. Riddar of Harwich and Eric H. Riddar of Brewster; a daughter- Kristine M. Thayer of Rutland; four grandchildren ; a great-grandson; his companion of many years Barbara Leblanc; a sister-in-law Hjordis West; and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his wife of 37 years Margit (Anderson) Riddar in 1993.
Harold was born in Tjarlax, Napres, Finland, son of the late Otto and Selma (Carlson) Riddar. He grew up on a small farm in western Finland and was drafted into the Finnish Army in 1940 at the age of 16 to fight in what was known as the Continuation War with the Soviets. He served as a marksman on the front lines at the Finnish-Soviet border. His bravery and dedication to duty was recently honored by the Finnish government with his being presented with the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland. He came to the US in 1947 and served in the US Army. He graduated from WPI and worked as the former Manager of Design Graphics at Riley Stoker Engineering (currently Babcock Power) where he was employed for 36 years. Mr. Riddar was an avid fisherman who summered on Cape Cod, spent his winters in Florida and the shoulder seasons in Paxton. He was also a member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Worcester.
A funeral service will be held on Friday, October 13, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. in Trinity Lutheran Church 73 Lancaster St. Worcester. Burial will follow in All Faiths Cemetery. There are no calling hours. In lieu of flowers, donations in Harold's memory may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church. To leave an online condolence message, please click link.
Eastham Man to be Awarded White Rose of Finland
EASTHAM, MA — Harold Riddar, 93, of Eastham is to be awarded the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland on September 29, recognizing his honorable service in the Finnish Army during the Continuation War with Russia in the early 1940s. Sauli Niinistö, President of the Republic of Finland, decided to bestow the war veteran insignia upon Riddar this year specifically, with 2017 marking 100 years of Finnish independence from Russia.
Kirsti Kauppi, Ambassador of Finland to the United States, reached out to Riddar with an official mail notice in June of this year to inform him of his upcoming award. Finnish Consul General Manu Virtamo will present the medal in a ceremony held at the Ambassador’s residence in New York City.
Riddar grew up in Tjärlax, Närpes, Finland on a small farm that supported several cows, sheep, a horse, a pig, and barley and wheat. He was enrolled in school until the age of 12, at which time his father asked him to stay home and help on the farm. As he grew older and stronger, Riddar had more job prospects. At 14, he began working as a longshoreman on the Gulf of Bothnia shoveling coal. Then, on March 9, 1940, he was drafted into the Finnish Army.
The year prior, Russia had invaded Finland seeking claim to parts of Finnish land — prompting the Winter War — and Finland lost one eleventh of its national territory and approximately 13% of its economic capacity. On June 25, 1941, the Continuation War began, with Finland fighting to protect its remaining territory from Russia, and seeking to take its territory back that had been lost during the Winter War.
Riddar vividly remembers appearing at the railroad station near his hometown and saying goodbye to his girlfriend at the time, who he would never see again. He and other men — all Swedish-speaking Finns — piled into cattle cars and were transported to Dragsvik, Finland, where they trained. Riddar was an exceptional recruit, and was given specialized advanced marksman training with 15 other men. Following his time in Dragsvik, he moved on to Jessoila, where Riddar says he “met winter.” From there, he went on to battle on the Karelian front on the Soviet-Finnish border by Lake Onega in the 2nd Battalion, 4th Company.
Riddar recalls that at one point in his service, he did not once remove his boots through nine months of intense fighting. Biting cold and having to quickly escape Russian bullets and artillery would not allow him the option of removing his footwear. Russian sources reported that it was so cold at the front that some infantrymen were found frozen to death in a standing position. Riddar served on the front lines in Karelia until the war ended in 1944. Of the many young men from his village called to serve the Republic of Finland, Riddar was one of the few who returned from the front. To this day, he can still hear the young runner who came to his camp at 5:00am announcing a ceasefire to begin in at 6:00am. Though all territory was not regained, Finland, as a small democratic nation — a David that stood up to a Goliath — defended its independence and retained its national sovereignty.
Riddar immigrated to America in 1947 and joined the United States Army. Shortly after, he started building a life in Massachusetts. He married Margit Anderson Riddar and enrolled in Worcester Junior College. Upon passing his high school equivalency exam, he embarked on an education at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he studied for 5 years. Upon graduation, he worked as a draftsman at Riley Stoker — now Babcock Power, Inc. — and rose up the ranks as a principal engineer and Manager of Design Graphics. He and his wife were blessed with three children who they raised in Paxton, MA. They frequented Cape Cod for family vacations and fishing trips, and upon retirement, Riddar settled in Eastham. Riddar now proudly has four grandchildren and a great-grandchild on the way.
Riddar is greatly humbled and deeply honored to receive the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland, acknowledging his service after all these years.