The Mother-At-Arms

Phyllis Laurel Bayley, of Vancouver, BC, enlisted in the wartime Women’s Royal Canadian Naval Service in 1943, serving at HMCS Conestoga, Ontario, and Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, until 1946, when she left the navy to work for the Canadian Pacific railway line and to run her own business, a women’s clothing store in Vancouver.

In 1953, after being approached by Lt Jean Crawford Smith, who later became a LCdr and Staff Officer for the Wrens, Phyllis Bayley joined the Royal Canadian Navy regular force on Continuous Naval Duty at HMCS Naden in Esquimalt. Crawford-Smith was the Wren Divisional Officer at Moresby House (Wren headquarters in Esquimalt), and Bayley became the Divisional Petty Officer.

Dubbed “The Mother-at-Arms” by one former Wren, she ran a pusser * (seamanlike and by the book) but happy establishment. Like a good mother, the PO doled out favours and punishments with an even hand; morale was high.

In 1955, she transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy (Wrens) when that opportunity arose and was promoted to Chief Petty Officer 2^nd Class. Chief Bayley was drafted to Cornwallis as the senior rating in the Wren Personnel Branch and the Wren Divisional Chief Petty Officer.

She might have been a reluctant recruit for East Coast service, being a west-coaster to the bone.

When those of us from Naden who joined the Regular Force arrived in HMCS Cornwallis for the RCN Conversion Course, our impulse was to rush into her arms, we were so glad to see her. Chief Bayley was stern and aloof. Naden Wrens were not going to receive any favouritism. It was a bit of a blow!

The Wren Personnel Branch was responsible for administration of Wren quarters and the morale, well-being and discipline of the Wrens. Chief Bayley took all facets of the trade seriously and made sure those who followed in her footsteps did the same.

To promote esprit de corps on the East Coast, she frequently organized inter-base sports meets among Cornwallis, Stadacona, Shearwater and Shelburne Wrens – swimming, volleyball and basketball in the winter, and swimming, volleyball and baseball in the summer. Chief Bayley enjoyed sports and was always a member of the Cornwallis teams, which particularly delighted the New Entry Wrens.

Phyllis Bayley was a woman of high moral fibre, an individual of understanding and humour, and a stern taskmaster who led by example. She had a polarizing personality which did not appeal to everyone. But, you could never doubt her loyalty to the Service or her exacting standards for the women she led.  She died in Vancouver on February 10, 1988, much mourned.