Joan Kennedy (born Joan Barbara Fensham; 1908–1956) was a Canadian soldier.

Born in Middlesex, Kennedy moved to Victoria, British Columbia as a teenager and later worked as an accountant. When the Second World War began she founded the British Columbia Women's Service Corp to train women in noncombatant roles.[1] She was "the founding and driving force behind the creation" of the Canadian Women's Army Corps in 1941.[2] Kennedy was appointed commander-in-chief of the corps at the rank of lieutenant colonel – the first woman to receive a commission in the Canadian Army.[3][1]

Kennedy left the army in 1946 and died in 1956.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 George Szasz (10 November 2020). "Remembering Canada's first female soldier". BC Medical Journal.
  2. ↑ "Remembrance Day: A Tribute to a Hero – Mrs. Joan Kennedy". mobinajaffer.ca. 11 November 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  3. ↑ "History Through Our Eyes: June 9, 1943, CWAC's Joan Kennedy". The Montreal Gazette. 9 June 2019.


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