2006 marks 60th anniversary of the War Bride

BY HEIDI ULRICHSEN

Six Pioneer Manor residents who came to the country after the Second World War as the blushing brides of Canadian servicemen were honoured by the nursing home Wednesday.

The war brides were presented with certificates and framed and restored wedding photographs in celebration of the Year of the War Bride. This year marks the 60th anniversary of when most war brides came to Canada.

The elderly women were joined for scones and tea by friends and family, Ward 3 Councillor Ron Dupuis, and 15 members of the Sudbury War Brides Club.

The nursing home's manager of recreation and volunteerism, Ginette Forget-Rose, told the crowd a little bit about the war brides' lives.

"We got some information about you from your families. We did a little bit of conniving and got some of your history. There's a lot of things you ladies didn't know that we did," she said.

Alice Cadger, originally from Durham County in England, was honoured during the ceremony. The 87-year-old married Edwin Cadger in St. John's Chapel in London, England in 1944 and came to Canada two years later.

Her husband was a private in the Canadian contingency of the Royal Air Force. At that time, Canada didn't have its own air force. Edwin passed away 11 years ago.

Alice almost didn't get married. The couple had set the wedding date, but then Edwin's leave was cancelled.

But one day, the young woman happened to be in King's Cross station, and met her fiance there by accident.He was on his way to tell her that he had leave for 48 hours, and they got married during that period of time.

Alice's two sisters and brother came to Canada a year later, and she was eventually joined by her mother as well. The mother of two lived in Sudbury and later St. Catherines.

The woman moved back to Sudbury three years ago to access long-term care near her daughter, Sheila Furino."To celebrate this with my mom is something that I'll cherish for a long time," said Furino.

Alice, who still speaks with a slight English accent, wasn't able to chat with Northern Life much because she is hard of hearing and there was a lot of background noise in the room, but she said being honoured by the nursing home is a "wonderful occasion."

Esther Vaillancourt, who is proud of her roots in Glasgow, Scotland, was also honoured at the ceremony.

She met Abbe Vaillancourt, a signalman from Chelmsford in the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals, when he asked her for directions to a hall where a dance was being held. He later asked her out to the cinema, and they were married in 1943, just a week after they met.

She arrived in Halifax in May 1946 with her two young children, and lived in Chelmsford. The couple had four more children in Canada. Abbe, who was a justice of peace in the community, died three years ago.

Esther said her voyage across the Atlantic was "horrible" and "it was hard to leave Scotland." She helped to look after people on the ship who were terribly seasick.

She didn't like Canada much at first because of the cold and snow. "It's too cold. It rains all the time in Scotland. Have you ever been to Scotland? It's beautiful."

Her daughter, Deborah Unrau, said it's "fabulous" her mother is being honoured. "I wish my father was here to see it," she said.

The other women honoured at the ceremony were Kathleen Riley-James, Marie Fielding, Mary Lundgren and Iris Curry. Members of the War Brides Club were also presented with certificates by Dupuis, although their stories weren't told.