War bride search is on in Ontario community

Yvonne Leahy is a war bride. She met Joe Leahy of Douro , Ontario in London, England during World War II at one of the many dance halls set up throughout Europe. Dance halls were one of the few places where there was fun to be had, and where soldiers could blow off steam with a taste of ‘normal life’ between tours. As with 48,000 other women , Yvonne immigrated to Canada to start her life with her husband. She arrived in 1946, 2 months before Joe, and 6-months pregnant. She went straight to Douro to meet her new in-laws, and to await her husband’s arrival. A local historical society hopes to recognize as many war brides as they can track down…. hard stuff since they’d be in their late 80’s and early 90’s, and don’t often cruise social media for events of interest. So, as she says, she’s going public.