Women's participation on the home front was essential to the war effort. Leading into the Second World War, the 'breadwinner model' indicated that married women belonged in the home, with men working. Men were supposed to work and play in the public domain with the private realm supposedly being the domain of women. The outbreak of World War II forced society to rethink women's role outside of the home. The largest contribution by the majority of Canadian women was through unpaid volunteer work, through their domestic abilities and skills; women were able to support the nation and the war effort. The government called upon women to participate in volunteer programs. Women began collecting recycled items such as paper, metal, fat, bones, rags, rubber, and glass. Clothing was also collected by Canadian women for free distribution overseas. They also prepared care packages to send to the men and women overseas. Canadian women were responsible for maintaining the morale of the nation. All over Canada, women responded to demands made upon them by not only selling war savings stamps and certificates but purchasing them as well, and collecting money to by bombers and mobile canteens.Bruse, Jean. Back in the Attack: Canadian women during the Second World War at Home and Abroad. Toronto: Macmillan of Canada 1985. If you were a young unattached woman in 1939, the war offered unprecedented opportunities on the home front. Young women were given a chance to move away from home, go to parties and dances in the name of patriotic duty.
