When it came to recent discussions regarding the revitalization of the Southampton Cenotaph, I began thinking about my Aunt Arlene.
She designed the WWII Plaque on the Memorial Cairn at the corner of High and Huron Streets. It was manufactured at Rahn Metals in North Bay, of which her husband was one of the owners. His name was Ervin Pennock, but we all called him Uncle Penny.
Aunt Arlene had met Uncle Penny at Niagara on the Lake where she was a Driver in the Canadian Women’s Army Corps in WWII, and he was a young Lieutenant in the Algonquin Regiment. But he was also a singer/piano player. They fell in love and after his training ended, they married, before he shipped out for Europe. Two of her brothers also served, including my dad George and my Uncle Les. It was a big deal in quiet little Chesley to have three from the same family enlist with one being a woman.
But as the rules of the day said, women in the military were not allowed to be married and she was immediately discharged.
Well, there was never any dust on Aunt Arlene. She went to North Bay and set up her home to await the return of Uncle Penny. When he got back from the war, two sons arrived in a short time and Uncle Penny had returned to the foundry close to the shore of Lake Nippissing where they produced bronze, brass and copper parts for the mining industry in Northern Ontario and Quebec.
After the war, there quickly became a demand for bronze plaques for Cenotaphs and Memorial parks and Parkettes, and Aunt Arlene became the salesperson for Rahn Metals pursuing this business with Municipalities and Legions across Canada. One of these was the Southampton Legion who were planning to create a new memorial area away from the Town Hall and it became the little spot on the end of the boulevard at the corner of High and Huron streets that is there today.
Dad and Mom and my younger siblings went to North Bay for a summer visit and returned with the plaque laying in the trunk of the big old family Chrysler.
Back in the late 1940s, Aunt Arlene was heralded for exceptional bravery when she saved three small children from death in a house fire. In going through a box of old “stuff”, there a tattered and torn news bit from the North Bay Nugget daily newspaper. It tells most of the story but not all.
The interview in the story typified the person she was. “Any mother would have done the same,” she said. She was the recipient of a Nation Award for exceptional bravery and for risking her own life. Her obituary in 1997 included a long list of organizations that she had played in a leadership role of service to her community of North Bay – Past President of the Kinette Club, Past Worthy Grand Matron of the Eastern Star, Past Regent of I. O. D. E., Past President of the Lioness Club, and an active member of the Cancer Society for more than 30 years … and she loved Southampton.
In the 1990’s, after she was widowed, she would always visit my wife Gail and I at our cottage for a couple of weeks each summer, when I would make sure to get some time off. It was always “Let’s get going” time for Aunt Arlene. Every day was an adventure. Yes, for sure, Aunt Arlene made a difference. She touched many and will long be remembered for her caring attitude to all.
by a loving nephew
G. William Streeter (July 23, 2024)
