Commemorating Elsa Lessard: A legacy of service and advocacy

Elsa Lessard, a Second World War veteran, will be honoured with a street named in her memory.

Eighty years ago, while the Second World War raged across the ocean, a group of dedicated servicewomen on a small New Brunswick farm sat with headphones and pencils, carefully listening to encrypted German radio transmissions.

One of those women was Elsa Lessard, a proud member of the Women’s Royal Canadian Naval Service (WRCNS), popularly known as Wrens.

After enlisting in 1943, Elsa specialized in Morse code, serving as a “secret listener,” responsible for intercepting and transcribing secret German Naval radio messages during the Battle of the Atlantic. These transcribed messages were then sent to Bletchley Park in England to be decoded. Once decoded, the messages were used to find the positions of German U-boats that were tracking and sinking Allied supply ships across the Atlantic Ocean.

These intercepted communications played a key role in cracking Germany's Enigma code, which significantly helped the Allied war effort.

The operation at Bletchley Park was top secret and everyone, including Elsa and her fellow Wrens, was sworn to secrecy. The details of this intelligence work remained classified for decades and only began to emerge many years after the war ended.

Beyond her military service, Elsa was a passionate educator and advocate, sharing her wartime experiences to highlight the essential roles women played during the war, always emphasizing that they were full members of the Navy and not merely an auxiliary force.

Her dedication and service were recognized with numerous honours throughout her life, including the Voluntary Service Medal, the War Medal, the King Charles III Coronation Medal, a Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation, the Bletchley Park Service Badge and the Robert I. Hendy Award.

Elsa Lessard passed away in Ottawa on July 22, 2025, at the age of 103.

To honour Elsa’s service, courage and advocacy, a street is being named in her memory. The street blade for “privé Elsa Lessard Private” will be located in a new Mattamy Homes development in Rideau-Rockcliffe Ward and will bear the Poppy symbol – the ultimate sign of remembrance.

This tribute was made possible through the City’s Commemorative Street Naming for Veterans Program, a partnership with the City, Veterans Affairs Canada and the Royal Canadian Legion.

This year’s ceremony will take place during Veterans’ Week in November.

 

About the Veterans Commemorative Street Naming Program

Now in its twentieth year, the Veterans Commemorative Street Naming Program is a street-naming initiative to honour our local veterans. It is a partnership between the City of Ottawa, Veterans Affairs Canada, the Royal Canadian Legion and local private developers. 

Local developers participate in this initiative by voluntarily naming streets within new housing developments. The permanent street sign that is installed during the final last stages of construction bears the poppy – the ultimate sign of remembrance.

 

Photo Credit: Roberta Gal ​

 

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