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This story was submitted to the People’s War website by Dhimati Acharya, of East Sussex Library and Information Services, on behalf of Cherry A. North and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

My family was evacuated for a short period from Eastbourne to Sandy Cross, Heathfield. My father worked for Lyons and the firm had moved its stock store to Heathfield. We returned to Eastbourne when my father volunteered for the RAF.

Eastbourne suffered greatly during the war. I remember lying in the fields and watching bombers flying overhead. I worked for Pickfords for a short time and people would ring up to make sure that their belongings were safely stored, and not affected by the bombings - the Central Library, which was close-by, had been badly damaged by the bombing.

I joined the Girls’ Training Corp and later became a Wren. Whilst stationed in Plymouth, I had my first taste of a grapefruit. I was so excited that I ate the fruit straight away, peeling it with my fingers, and without any sugar!

I was sent to Mill Hill for training, and I learnt how to make up a bed with the anchor on the bed-cover facing the right way up. If the bed wasn’t made up properly, you had to do it again until you got it right! In Petersfield I underwent a course on coding, this was held in a very ‘posh’ house with listening devices.

In Plymouth, I did underground signalling work. The house we were billeted in was unfit for any other service but the Wrens. We worked very hard but also had fun. We would come off night duty and hitch-hike to Torquay for recreation.

I eventually secured a compassionate drafting to Brighton and then Eastbourne. The Navy had taken over Eastbourne College. I can remember being late on one occasion and took a short cut through the grounds and was put on charge for walking through the morning muster.

During the war years it was all go and you made the most of everything.

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