SUNDRE - Council will be recognizing the milestone birthday of Sundre area citizen Elsie Doreen Johnston, who next month will be celebrating her 95th birthday.
Born on June 12, 1926 in Northallerton, England, Johnston eventually became one of many war brides when during the Second World War she wed her husband John -- who was in the Royal Canadian Air Force -- on Dec. 20, 1942.
In 1944, Johnston left behind the life she knew and embarked on the cross-Atlantic trek to the rustic life of rural Canada, later describing the experience of boarding a modified troopship with her infant son as a “nightmare voyage over stormy seas.”
Upon arriving at Pier 21 in Halifax, the family initially moved to Borden, Sask., before later relocating in 1947 to settle on a farm northwest of Sundre with her husband, two children and an infant. Johnston went on to raise eight children in the area, which she has called home for 74 years.
In 1987, she received the Sundre Citizen of the Year Award, and in 2002, Johnston was presented with the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award.
Coun. Paul Isaac’s motion for council to participate in the celebration of Johnston’s 95th birthday by issuing a certificate recognizing the milestone signed by Mayor Terry Leslie on behalf of his colleagues and the community, carried unanimously.