Obituary of The Honourable Albert Ludwig

Nov. 14, 1919 – Feb. 16, 2019 Albert was born November 14, 1919 in Melfort, Saskatchewan. He grew up on his parent’s farm near Rycroft, Alberta. In 1940, Albert travelled with a few friends to Edmonton and enlisted in the Edmonton 49ers, a Canadian infantry regiment, as he thought enlisting to fight for his Country was the “right thing to do”. In Britain, he was promoted and quickly trained as navigator and bomb aimer for the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was commissioned April, 1944 as a RCAF Bomb Aimer Squadron:426 but was shot down June 13, 1944 in France. He was captured by the Germans on July 17, 1944 and was eventually taken to a POW camp called Luft 7. He was one of the 80,000 POWs who were forced to march across Poland, Czechoslovakia & Germany in the January and February 1945 winter with his group – marching over 600 miles to reach their final destination at a POW Camp near Berlin. April 21, 1945 their camp was liberated by the Russian Red Army – Albert had been a POW for almost 10 months and was demobilized in November, 1945. Albert earned his law degree from the University of Alberta and opened his law practice in Calgary where he practiced law for 29 years. In 1964 Albert was appointed Queen’s Counsel by the Alberta Attorney General’s Department. As the Social Credit Party MLA for Calgary East and then Calgary Mountain View ridings, Albert served for four terms (1959 – 1975). He was appointed Minister for Public Works (1969-1971) and despite the Social Credit Government’s defeat in 1971 by Peter Lougheed’s PC Party, Albert was re-elected and sat in Opposition to the Honorable Premier Lougheed’s Progressive Conservative Government. After being defeated in 1975, Albert ran as the federal Liberal candidate in Calgary East in 1979 and then in 1997, Albert was nominated as the candidate in only days before the provincial election was called. Sadly he was not elected to either office. As an MLA, Albert is best known for spearheading an initiative which led to the introduction of the first government ombudsman in Canada. Albert was appointed as a Criminal Court Judge by Premier Lougheed in 1979 and retired in 1989 at 70 years young. He enjoyed skydiving, horseback riding and politics. He wrote and copyrighted the Canadian Creed in 2006 and was a life time member of the Knights of the Round Table and the Calgary Aircrew Association. Albert was predeceased by his wife Lavone and his son Edward. He is survived by his son Curt Ludwig and his two daughters, Ellen Ludwig and Joanne Ludwig; and his brother Charles Allan Brandt. He will be greatly missed by his nephew Stan Bzowy and his wife, Evelyn; as well as long time friends, Michael and Nannette Gretton and Frances Wright and Richard Pootmans and many others. Our thanks to his fabulous caregivers, especially to Candy Cheung. A Memorial Service will be held at McINNIS & HOLLOWAY (Park Memorial, 5008 Elbow Drive S.W., Calgary, AB) on Friday, March 1, 2019 at 2:30 p.m. Reception to follow in the Funeral Home. Condolences may be forwarded through www.mcinnisandholloway.com. In living memory of Albert Ludwig, a tree will be planted at Fish Creek Provincial Park by McINNIS & HOLLOWAY FUNERAL HOMES, Park Memorial, 5008 Elbow Drive S.W., Calgary, AB, T2S 2L5, Telephone: 403-243-8200.