The Wetelainen Family

Frank Wetelainen, his siblings Alfred, William and Maime were born in Goldrock (located 30 miles south-east of Wabigoon) to an Ojibway mother and a Finnish father. All siblings were enlisted with the Canadian Armed Forces during the Second World War.

Attending a public school was not easy for Frank as he often found school to be a lonely experience. Frank identified with his mother and her culture and saw himself as a person of Aboriginal descent. Though he regularly attended the Pow wows and other social gatherings on the Wabigoon First Nation, Frank, his siblings and his mother were denied Native status.

After completing his elementary studies, Frank worked in the bush and cut pulp wood with a swede saw for three years. He was then employed as a mechanics helper with Durance motors in Dryden.

In January 1945, at the age of seventeen, Frank enlisted with the Canadian Army and trained in Winnipeg as an infantryman for two months. He was then transferred to Camp Borden near Toronto where he continued his training for three more months. Despite the fact that training was grueling, army life relieved Frank of the poverty that he grew up with and experienced during The Great Depression.

While he was enlisted Frank heard that the Army was actively looking for soldiers who could speak a Native language. They were being sought after because they were able to communicate over radio without fear of being understood by the Germans. If radio communication was done in any European language, the Germans had their own interpreters who would translate the message. However, the Germans had no persons who understood any of the Native languages.

By the time that he finished his training, the war in Europe was coming to a close with victory for the Allied Forces. Frank had the option to either go to Europe to replace Canadian troops coming home after battle or to volunteer for service in the East against Japan. He chose the latter and trained on the West coast of Canada with the expectation of seeing combat in Asia as an infantryman. However the atomic bomb was dropped on Japan and that brought the Second World War to an end.

Frank received an honourable discharge from the Canadian Army in Winnipeg on November 28, 1945 and returned home to Wabigoon. Today, Frank has reclaimed his status as a member of the Wabigoon First Nation. He lives in retirement with his wife Betty in Wabigoon.

PLEASE SEE TWO MORE PICTURES FURTHER DOWN THIS WEB PAGE

Pictured here is Alfred Wetelainen

Pictured on the right is William Wetelainen