Corps Crest and Name

Commander William (Bill) Evelyn

Bill Evelyn was born in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad to Canadian parents and returned to Canada as a five-year-old. He loved planes and got a pilot’s license while in high school.

He joined the University Naval Training Division (UNTD) program while studying Engineering Physics at Dalhousie University. He then transferred to the Regular Force Navy in the Fleet Air Arm.

He trained at the Royal Naval Engineering Academy in Portsmouth, England earning a Certificate of Competency in Aeronautical Engineer.

On returning to HMCS Shearwater, he served as a test pilot/engineer. Three years later he rejoined the Naval Reserve as he'd taken up a civilian position with General Motors.

He served in HMCS Chippewa in Winnipeg before coming to Calgary with GM and joining HMCS Tecumseh. A huge challenge as CO was the great fire of 1981 that destroyed most of the main building at Tecumseh. Bill and the ship's company carried on in the best tradition of the Navy.

Following his HMCS Tecumseh time, he served as a Canadian delegate to NATO's Confederation of Reserve Officers in Brussels, Belgium. He retired from GM as the Western Regional Manager then joined the staff of Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. Later, he was a longtime President of the Naval Veteran's Association and a President of the Naval Museum of Alberta Society.