Lenan Norris was a volunteer from British Columbia. He immigrated from England to Canada in 1920. He was affiliated with the Young Communist League, the Communist Part of Canada, the Canadian Labour Defence League, and the Relief Project Workers' Union. Before travelling to Spain, he served with a Canadian Militia.
In Spain, Norris was assigned to the British Battalion, where he worked in transmissions. He was hospitalized with jaundice, but survived the war and returned to Canada in 1939. He served in the Canadian Army during World War II, though he was initially turned away and had to make a second attempt to enlist. He only served three months, and was discharged due to tuberculosis.
He was the editor of the newsletter of the Veterans of the Mackenzie Papineau Battalion, and visited Spain with the Veterans delegation in 1979.
