Comox Legion Branch 160
1825 Comox Avenue V9M 3M3 Comox, BC, Canada

#WeRemember: Brigadier-General (retired) Sheila Hellstrom On Monday, December 7, 2020 the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) lost an important member of our past. ...Brigadier-General (retired) Sheila Hellstrom passed away at the age of eighty-five. When 20-year old Sheila Hellstrom joined the RCAF in 1954, it was a mere two years after the RCAF was authorized to accept women volunteers. In 1987, she became the first woman serving as a Regular Force officer to be promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General. At the time, women were still barred from combat roles. With the promotion, Brigadier General Hellstrom took on the job of Director-General for personnel. In 1989, she was appointed the chair of the Committee on Women in NATO Forces (CWINF). Brigadier General Sheila Hellstrom believed that by including women into the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), the organization would be stronger. Her contribution to the diversity and inclusion of the CAF in general, and the RCAF in particular, will not be forgotten. #RCAF #BecauseofHer DND