Maudie was born in Wabigoon and along with her siblings Victor, Gordon, Margaret, and Laverne, served in the Canadian Armed Forces during the Second World War.
Victor and Laverne served with the Lake Superior Regiment. Laverne was killed in France in 1944. Gordon served with the Special Services Forces and went missing in Italy in 1943. (Maudie adds that they never even found Gordon’s dog tags). Margaret served with the Canadian Women’s Army Corps.
Maudie tried to enlist with the Canadian Army in February 1942. She was told that the Army was not taking any more personnel. Undeterred, she continued to try to enlist and finally on September 9, 1942, she was accepted with the RCAF in Winnipeg.
The RCAF sent her for training at the Manning Depot located on the outskirts of Ottawa. She received one month of basic training which included learning to march, and how to perform general duties which also included learning how to make a bed. Once a week, the officers would check the bed to ensure that it was made the correct way. After Ottawa, she went back to Manitoba and continued her general duties which included cleaning the offices, and washing dishes. As she only had a grade eight education, she could not train as a meteorologist.
She travelled to Halifax and then boarded the HMS Andes ship to Scotland. The trip was difficult to tolerate as she suffered from motion sickness for five days while crossing the Atlantic. While on the water, she lost twenty-four pounds. She arrived in Scotland on January 26, 1943. From there, she boarded a train and went to Knigths Bridge RCAF station in London where she stayed for a short time in a hostel. She was then transferred to Yorkshire, England. Here, a large castle, once owned by a German baron was utilized as the RCAF’s 6th group headquarters for the 400th bomber squadron.
Maudie worked in a large dining room, serving the officers their meals. She also performed general duties such as cleaning and laundry.
Maudie was then transferred to a field post office in Yorkshire where she sorted the mail and handed mail out to the servicemen. From there, she was shipped to the Canadian Overseas Postal Depot (COPD) in London. The COPD was located in a factory that once made brulcream (for men’s hair). Nearby, was the Guinness Beer Factory, which Maudie remembers by its strong odour. While at the COPD, she readdressed mail that was then sent to the servicemen. All incoming Canadian mail was sent to the COPD, then readdressed to where the servicemen were stationed.
On one of her leaves, she went to visit the Lake Superior Regiment where her brothers Victor and Laverne were posted. There she saw Johnny Vost who was stationed as a gate guard. Johnny Vost was also from Dryden and was a very popular student at DHS. Johnny was killed in Belgium in 1944.
Maudie continued at the COPD until the end of the war. She remembers Armistice when everyone was out in the streets cheering.
In December 1945, Maudie returned to Canada by way of New York. She took a train to Montreal and got off at Wabigoon on December 4, 1945. She received her honourable discharge from the RCAF in Winnipeg on January 15, 1946