Metro CANNOn

Metro “Boom-Boom” Cannon was born on November 7th, 1919 in Hamilton, Ontario, and was the third of Zachary Kalyniuk and Anna Levko’s four children. He grew up in the North End with his brothers Michael (b. 1916) and John (b.1918) and sister Nelle (b.1921), who he would play cowboys with on the train tracks. Though they couldn’t afford many toys growing up, that didn’t stop them from having some fun; Metro’s daughter Holly remembers her father telling her how he and his brothers made balls out of horse dung to play with when they were little! Additionally, his daughter Mitzi remembers hearing that, because food could be scarce, as little boys Metro and his brothers would steal potatoes from gardens, with the good intent of trying to help their family – and, maybe, with a little mischievous spirit. Without much family in Canada, his parents connected with other Hamiltonian Ukrainian immigrants to keep their language, culture, and traditions alive. The children attended Ukrainian language classes, celebrated Ukrainian Orthodox Christmas on January 7th, ate traditional meals like cabbage soup and borscht, pierogies, and cabbage rolls, and all took up Ukrainian dancing. Despite his restlessness and reputation for being crabby in the mornings, Metro was the quieter of his siblings. As he grew older, his mother made him responsible for looking after his sister Nelle, chaperoning her to school dances and making sure she was always safe. Although this meant he couldn’t have much of a social life of his own, it resulted in the two of them having a really close relationship. 

After three years at Hamilton Technical Institute (Central Secondary) with his brothers, where he trained in metal working, Metro began working as a machine operator at Dominion Glass at age seventeen for nearly four years. His life changed forever on September 10th, 1939, when Canada declared war on Germany. Anxious to serve for his country, and following his brothers, Metro enlisted in the Canadian Forces at twenty years old on July 24, 1940 with the 41st Lieutenant Battery in Dundas, and trained in Patawawa. In September 1941, he transferred to the 5th Canadian Provost Company in the 5th Canadian Armed Division at Camp Borden. Two months later, he journeyed overseas to the U.K., where he served for two years, before being  stationed in Italy from November 1943 to February 1944. After that he was promoted to Sergeant, and sent throughout Northwest Europe until December 1945. Over the years he was periodically able to meet up with his brother John in England and France, but was unable to see his brother Michael, who fought with the British Army in North Africa. Much like his brother John, Metro was reserved about his experiences in the Second World War, and didn’t let on that he was troubled by them. He would sometimes share stories with his daughters, such as one involving him showing off his motorcycle-riding to a milkmaid in a field, before, to his embarrassment, he got thrown off the bike, and it landed on him; the milkmaid came running over to check on him. The only horror story from the war that Holly remembers being told involves when he heard an enemy plane attacking overhead; he dropped to the ground and took cover, but tragically one of his comrades across the field was killed in the blast.

Metro was repatriated to Canada in early 1946, after the war had ended, and was officially discharged on March 16th. In November 1946, he re-enlisted with the Canadian Forces in the Canadian Provost Corps, a choice that would result in a twenty-six year military career. Upon re-enlistment he was granted the rank of Corporal. His comrades nicknamed him “Boom Boom” Cannon, and even his future trophies were awarded to “Boom-Boom”; he would later send postcards to his family in Ontario signed “the Great Boom of the North”. He first undertook military police duties at Camp Borden, then in London (Ontario), Montreal and Quebec City (May ‘48), and Winnipeg (December ‘48), before being posted in Whitehorse in the Yukon (June 1950), where he did two tours. It is in Whitehorse where he met his wife Charlotte Auld, who had travelled up north from British Columbia to do bookkeeping. When she got off the train, her luggage was missing, and so she reported to the military police office – where Metro Cannon just so happened to be. It only took one glance at the “redhead bombshell” – as Holly and Mitzi remember their father telling them – to be put on a mission to find her suitcase. When he did, and brought it to her, she didn’t pay much attention to him; but, after a second meeting at a dance that night, the two hit it off. As later shared by Metro, the highlight of all his tours was marrying Charlotte in 1951 in Kamloops, British Columbia. After he was posted in Chilliwack (July 1951) and Vancouver, he was then sent to do two tours in Calgary, where their first daughter Holly was born, in 1955. 

In October 1955, Metro was posted to Germany. When the family arrived, the military didn’t have a place for them to stay, so they lived in a quaint house with a German couple and their young son Wolfgang. During their time there, Metro and Charlotte were able to meet up with Michael and his wife Mary, and they toured Europe together. After two years, in June 1957, Metro was posted back to Vancouver, and their second daughter Mitzi was born shortly after. When Mitzi was two, the family moved back to Whitehorse, where they lived for four years before settling back down in Calgary. In 1967, Metro was posted to Cyprus for peacekeeping for six months. He wrote letters to his family every day, but, as his daughters recall, he had terrible handwriting and the letters always took them some effort to decipher; nevertheless, it was the thought that counted. He would also send parcels home with all kinds of stuff for them that was more affordable over there. About two years later, the military wanted Metro to be posted to Kingston, Ontario. Though he visited family in Ontario, he was not fond of its humid summers and cold winters; combined with the fact that his daughters were entering their teenage years, and neither he or Charlotte wanted them to live in an army camp (and fall in love with a soldier), he made the tough decision to retire from the army. He was honourably released on May 10th, 1968.

From then on, Charlotte remained the wage-earner, continuing her bookkeeping, while Metro continued to be the homemaker, doing most of the cooking and cleaning. Holly and Mitzi remember feeling so fortunate to have grown up with loving parents who spent quality time with them, and who were supportive with everything they wanted to do, such as piano and swimming lessons. They believe that their parents were very much ahead of their time, having married later in life (both at 32), having only had two children, and having reversed the traditional parental duties of the time. In many ways, he and Charlotte were a perfect match. Though Charlotte was more outgoing, Metro knew how to light up the room in a group of familiar faces, and was just as fun to be around. They would go out every Monday night to square dance, and also bowled and curled together. They even started up a group called the Nifty Fifty Club, consisting of couples within their community in Calgary whom they would regularly go out and have fun with.

Every other Christmas the family would split up as Charlotte took one daughter to BC to visit her family, and Metro took the other to Ontario to see his family; the kids would swap each time. Though they didn’t traditionally celebrate Orthodox Christmas, Mitzi remembers that the Christmas tree could never come down until after January 7th.  Sometimes they would extend their stay in Ontario to celebrate the holiday at Nelle and Russell’s, with all the traditional Ukrainian foods.

Metro was a jokester, and was always looking to crack people up; he couldn’t even get through one of his own jokes without laughing at it himself! He enjoyed listening to polka music and Jim Reeves, and loved watching sports, especially hockey – rooting for the Montreal Canadiens, before the Calgary Flames – and football – cheering on the Hamilton Tiger Cats – as well as wrestling. He watched Peyton Place and 60 Minutes with his wife, and enjoyed the sitcom All in the Family as well as the detective show Cannon. After his retirement, Metro became a stalwart of Branch #264 of the Legion in Calgary. He was appointed Branch Treasurer in 1969, and ran games like the bingo program and prize draws for 30 years. He served on the executive committee, and also dedicated much of his time to Parkdale, the Legion’s local community,  overseeing the construction of a new community building, and publishing their newsletter for seniors. He was awarded a Life Membership by the Legion in 1979, a Meritorious Service Medal in 1985, and the branch’s first Palm Leaf award in February 1999. The army was his life, and his army buddies and community were just as important to him as his family. 

In January 1999 Metro was diagnosed with glioblastoma, and underwent an operation in February to remove as much of the tumour as possible. He passed away on May 14th, 1999, at age 79. His military-style funeral was held at the #264 Legion, and it was so big that there was standing room only. He is remembered as a loving father, grandfather, and husband, and a fun uncle – a family man through-and-through, who, as evidenced through his military and community work, was committed to making his loved ones’ futures as safe, comfortable, and happy as possible. 
 

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In loving memory of Metro Cannon
November 7th 1919 - May 14th 1999