When it comes to world wars the focus usually centres around veterans, those who served on the front lines of combat.
For that combat to happen, however, hundreds of Canadian women worked in Toronto building plans and ammunition needed for battle.
Mickey Schienle was one of those women.
sa国际传媒淭he war was on and we knew that they had to do all this work, thatsa国际传媒檚 how they got their guns and any supplies or whatever they needed over there,sa国际传媒� Mickey said.
sa国际传媒淥f course, that had to be done over here. Instead of continuing with their education a lot of us just decided to put in our help.sa国际传媒�
Mickey was 18 when the Second World War broke out.
One job she had was in an ammunition plant in Ontario.
sa国际传媒淲e lived in a dorm and the pillows, they used white pillow slips. From whatever was in the air it turned our pillow slips orange. Not real orange, but you could see the orange hue on it, so we were breathing all that stuff. No masks or anything.sa国际传媒�
Mickey laughed when she mentioned the unhealthy air.
sa国际传媒淲ell, I donsa国际传媒檛 think so, but I still managed to get this far,sa国际传媒� said the 99-year-old.
Regular bomb drills, bunkers separating rooms of explosives, and meticulous cleanliness to avoid disaster were all part of everyday life for these women.
Mickey also spent a great deal of time working on the Lancaster planes, her preferred job during the war.
sa国际传媒淭hey had these jiggssa国际传媒nd the nose of the plane was on there. The panels that are on the outside, made of aluminum or whatever, are just sort of clipped on there with some sort of clip. So, we had to put rivets through. Drill holes where all these joints weresa国际传媒� and then put the rivet in.
sa国际传媒淢ost of the time I was on the inside and they called it bucking. You had a bucking bar and you had to hold it up against the rivet to make it flatten so that it would keep the panel on,sa国际传媒� she explained.
Lancasters were strategic bomber planes, allowing considerable accuracy even at night. The Lancaster was pivotal in the war and is considered the most effective British heavy bomber of the Second World War.
sa国际传媒淲hat they needed there we were producing. Without us, they couldnsa国际传媒檛 have had the war. Maybe we shouldnsa国际传媒檛 have done it,sa国际传媒� Mickey laughed.
When the war came to an end, the woman received no recognition, not even a handshake.
sa国际传媒淭he PA system came on and they said, sa国际传媒楾he war is over, turn off your machines. You can go home. Collect your paycheque at your usual place and time.sa国际传媒� That was it. No severance, no thank you, no nothing.sa国际传媒�
On the cusp of becoming a centenarian, Mickey now lives in a retirement home in Kelowna.
With the ongoing war in Ukraine, Mickey says thoughts of a third world war have crossed her mind.
sa国际传媒淵ou think about it because you donsa国际传媒檛 know what theysa国际传媒檙e going to do. Especially with the way, Putin acts, talking about nuclear stuff. Itsa国际传媒檚 kind of scary when you think about it. If they start with anything like thatsa国际传媒� might as well say goodbye to the world.sa国际传媒�
So on Nov. 11, donsa国际传媒檛 forget about the hundreds of women who worked behind the scenes, just like Mickey, who supported the fight for freedom.
READ MORE: Okanagan Indigenous veterans were stripped of their status after war efforts
brittany.webster@blackpress.ca
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