Steven Paul Kormandy (1922 – 2013)
Steve Kormandy was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia and came to Canada with his family when he was six. The family homesteaded at Westlock, Alberta during the depression.1)
Steve enlisted to serve in the Second World War against his family's wishes, as both parents had served in the First World War. For the first month of his service, Steve was a guard at Buckingham Palace and then he was sent to Holland where he fought in the European campaign. He was an excellent shot and became a corporal with the Highland Scouts Platoon Section as a sniper. The platoon was trained in stealth, camouflage, and operating behind enemy lines. He participated in D-Day, the invasion of Normandy, and then moved through the Netherlands. He fought for the liberation of Holland and was eventually wounded during an air raid in Belgium. Kormandy was a highly decorated soldier and received the Canadian Forces Service medal, the War Medal 1939-1945, the 1945-1949 Star, the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal, the France and Germany Star, and the Defence Medal. Over fifty years after the war he received the Medal of Remembrance from the Netherlands for his part in the liberation of Holland. Steve was formally discharged in 1945. He and a friend flipped a coin to see if they would go to South Africa or Yukon. Steve first went to Atlin and then moved on to Keno and Elsa.2)
In 1949, Kormandy signed up to mine at Calumet, near Keno City. He chose this place because he never liked crowds. After Calumet he worked for Con West at Clinton Creek. He moved to Dawson in 1957 when he met his future wife, Peggy Semple. Together they raised 'half a dozen kids,' ran a trapline, and fished and bar mined on the Stewart River.3) For most of his life in the Yukon, Kormandy was self-employed, living off the land, mining or fishing. He ran his trapline into his sixties when arthritis and war wounds restricted his activities. He still loved the life, so his daughter Debbie Negano went with him to lend a hand. Few could keep up with him, even into his eighties.4)
Steve Kormandy became a member of the YOOP in 1974 and received a lifetime membership in 2013. He was also an honorary member of the Dawson Ranger Patrol.5) At the 2005 Commissioner's Tea, the Dawson Legion presented him with a plaque that read “Presented to Cpl. Steve Kormandy Snr. Calgary Highlanders, Year of the Veteran 2005 by the Royal Canadian Legion Branch #1 Dawson City, Yukon Territory.6) Steve Kormandy did not talk much about his war experiences, but he spent a lifetime struggling with his memories.7)