Shilo Stag

Rozy, Radish or Snoz — these monikers were Rosalind (nee Flynn) Lebel’s nicknames when she attended Princess Elizabeth High School.

Today, an empty field sits in its place after being torn down, with students on the Base now taking a bus to Wawanesa or Brandon to attend high school.

“I was the last graduating class from Princess Elizabeth High school,” she recalled.

Her graduating class year book notes her goals were to “get out of Crang’s” and become a legal secretary. In her downtime, she partied, slept, worked, partied, and bugged Todd Smith.

Her favourite sayings were, “Smile people,” or “I don’t believe it.”

Quick with a smile and a sunny disposition, Lebel admits everybody on Base knows her, or someone who knows someone who knows her. As the assistant mess manager of the three messes, Lebel’s been here since birth.

But she isn’t as old as dirt as some might like to joke. Born on Aug. 23, 1969 as Rosalind Michelle Flynn, she lived with her parents, Mickey and Grace and three sisters, on Base at 117 Kingston Ave.

Her late father was a bombardier and had no desire to leave. And neither did Lebel. The furthest she’s been is Chater and Brandon, though she does travel out of the country, having spent her most recent holiday in Florida.

CFB Shilo “was the best place to grow up,” she concedes.

The youngest of four girls, Lebel readily admits her dad treated her and her sisters like princesses.

“He was always trying to protect our virtue.”

On her 50th birthday, Lebel found herself on the doorstep of 117 Kingston Ave. with a pizza in her hands. She was delivering pizza once a week for Garrison Grill’s Pizza Pizza. It was a bitter sweet moment as she dropped off the food.

Growing up on Base in the 70s and 80s was different from it is today. The three messes were always full acknowledges Lebel.

Kids were always out playing Red Light – Green Light, Red Rover and Spotlight. Different ranks lived segregated from each other. There was also a curfew and an annoying alarm which sounded off at 10 p.m.

“That meant nobody [aged] 16 and under could be on the street. That’s just the way it was,” she says.

The Base hosted a winter carnival which involved the entire community. Units and residents living in the PMQs competed against each other for the best snow sculpture. There were weekly or monthly block parties.

The grassy area behind her crescent was converted to an outdoor ice rink in the winter, where parents flooded the grass and maintained the ice.

“There was always something on the go,” she says smiling. “You couldn’t do anything wrong because there was always someone there to tell your parents or correct you on the spot.”

School teachers lived in the PMQs as well, so there was always someone looking out their window or door, she says, chuckling.

Young soldiers weren’t allowed into the residential area — referred to on this Base as the Q-Patch — unless they had permission first, she adds.

CANEX had a complete grocery store. A fully functional military hospital was on Base as well. And the GSH was always brimming with activity: movie nights, bowling, and square dancing made growing up on Base one of the best experiences of her life.

“We were a self-contained community. We were our own little town,” she says. “When you saw a kid walking by on the street with a towel rolled under his arm, you’d holler for him to wait while you grabbed your towel.”

Everyone looked out for everyone else. Working moms spelled each other off with childcare.

“It takes a community to raise a child,” she notes.

Lebel eventually married a civilian and moved to nearby Sprucewood, where she operated a pizza shop from 1999 to 2001. She still lives in Sprucewood, while her mom lives three doors down.

Lebel has noticed times have changed.

“Electronics replaced the way the world went. When people say there’s nothing to do on Base, I could cry,” she says. “We aren’t seeing the traditions anymore.”

She uses the decline in the messes as an example. Back in the day, the Junior Ranks, Sgt/WOs’ and Officers’ Messes were hopping.

“[Today] we have over 1,000 members. But they don’t come out. We’ve hosted UFC night. Bands. Paint night. Board and PC game night. We’ve asked the members for ideas to improve the mess experience.”

And still the numbers continue to decline not just here, but across all Bases and Wings in Canada.

On the bright side, Lebel’s boss and mess manager Patsy Marion share a lot of the same experiences as they grew up together.

“We’ve known each other our whole lives,” she offers. “We have a strong friendship and working relationship.”

And for Lebel, that’s just fine as she continues to work and live where she’s called home all her life — CFB Shilo.

Rozy Lebel shared photos with the Stag from her scrapbook, from her days going to school on the Base, to delivering food during the COVID-19 pandemic when the Junior Ranks hosted lunch events every second Friday with a drive-thru. Classmate Shauna Wright and Rozy hold a snake. Lebel not only serves drinks from behind the bar, but also prepares and cooks pizza after the Junior Ranks purchased a special pizza oven. Family photos submitted — Junior Ranks photos Jules Xavier/Shilo Stag