John Weir Foote only Royal Canadian Chaplain awarded Victoria Cross

By BRUCE FORSYTH

The Victoria Cross is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to members of British and Commonwealth militaries in times of war.

Only one has been awarded to a member of the Royal Canadian Chaplain Service, that being to Honourary Lieutenant-Colonel The Reverend John Weir Foote, VC, CD.

Reverend Foote was born on May 5, 1904, in Madoc, Ont. He was educated at the University of Western Ontario and Queen’s University. He then attended the Montreal Presbyterian College at McGill University, graduating from their Theology program.

Foote was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and served congregations at Fort Coulonge, Que., and Port Hope, Ont.

The outbreak of the Second World War saw many young men enlist in the Ar