135 The Royal Canadian Legion MANITOBA & NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO COMMAND www.mbnwo.ca George helped to escort the largest convoy ever to go over to the United Kingdom.There were 157 ships. Some convoys that were escorted inadvertently ran into trouble. Enemy subs managed to get in and sink several of the ships. When the war was just over, they were pulling into New York Harbor. It was then that George learned that his brother, Harold, had been killed. That was on May 3, 1945. Harold was in the Army, Lake Superior Regiment. Due to rough seas and thick fog, they had to “lay out” for about two days. When a ship is “laying out”, the engines are all shut down, and the stokers get busy wiping and cleaning the engines. On this particular occasion, orders came to turn the engines over. One of the stokers got caught, was squashed, and was badly injured. They had to get the doctor who was on the senior ship in the vicinity of their ship. The sea was extremely rough. The two ships came along side each other, bouncing against one another. They had the crash mates out to help prevent damage to either of the ships. The water was definitely too rough to rig a “bonza chair” to enable the doctor to get aboard the ship, so the doctor jumped across from his ship to George’s ship. The war was over, and George returned to Halifax, and transferred to Sydney, Nova Scotia. He volunteered to go to sea from there. He was sent, with others, to decommission the shore base in Bermuda. In November 1945, George returned to HMCS Chippawa in Winnipeg and received his discharge as Able Seaman (AB). He returned to his job with Imperial Oil in Brandon. On September 21, 1946, he married Jean Dow from Bethany. She worked in the Janeva Cafe in Minnedosa. George and Jean farmed in the Rapid City area for thirty years, retired in 1979, and moved to Minnedosa. They had a family of three: Harold, Craig, and Janice. George worked for the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation. He enjoyed golf, curling, and playing the violin. He was a Councillor in the in the R.M. of Saskatchewan for 19 years; secretary of the Rapid City Branch of The Royal Canadian Legion for 13 years and President for two years; Secretary of the Elks in Minnedosa; and operated a hardware store with Don McFaddin in Rapid City for ten years. He received the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp, 1939-1945 Star, and War Medal 1939-1945. George passed away in 2017. McLEAN, Mary Ross WWII Mary was born in Glasgow in 1909. She enlisted with the WRAF (service number 2117288) in Glasgow on November 26, 1942 and served in the United Kingdom during World War II. ACW2 Mary McLean was discharged in Ireland on July 13, 1944. Mary and her husband, John, had three children: John, Linda and Heather. She was a member of The Royal Canadian Legion Flin Flon Branch 73. Mary passed away in 1987. McLEAN, George Charles (continued)
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